Michelle Landry (Capricornia, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Infrastructure and Transport, representing the Minister for Regional Development. Will the minister update the House on action the government is taking to support jobs in regional areas, including by supporting affordable and reliable power? What is the importance of policy consistency to generate and foster investment, and are there any alternatives to the government's approach?

Darren Chester (Gippsland, National Party, Deputy Leader of the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Capricornia for her question. She is a great champion of the people of the Capricornia region, a fighter for her electorate. She understands the issues that matter to her community—issues like national security, the affordability and reliability of power supply, and jobs—and she is delivering every day through our infrastructure investment right along the Capricornia coast. And the Turnbull-Joyce government is delivering right around regional Australia. Whether it is our cities, our regional centres or our rural and remote areas, we know that businesses need certainty to invest. They need to have confidence to invest. That is why we have an infrastructure pipeline of projects that will see investment right around regional Australia and also in our cities. The member for Capricornia also knows who she has to stand up for. She stands up for people in her community—homeowners who need that affordable and reliable supply of energy and small business owners who need that affordable and reliable supply of energy. The Prime Minister, just like the member for Capricornia, is standing up for small businesses, households and manufacturers right around Australia.

It is important in this place to know who you are standing up for. You often have to pick a side in this place. The Australian Labor Party used to have a side: those opposite used to stand up for blue-collar workers. The member for McEwen is waving his hand around and the member for Shortland is arguing about this every day. I do feel sorry for the member for McEwen. He comes from a regional area where there are some blue-collar workers, so he must feel hopelessly compromised by the group he associates with now. The group he associates with now sell out blue-collar workers for green votes in the city every day. They used to stand up for people like members of the AWU.

I looked on the AWU website just the other day to see what industries you would be in if you wanted to join the AWU. You can be in industries like coalmining. You can be in industries like agriculture. If you joined that union, what do you think your union fees would be used for? Do you think they would be used for things like workplace safety or maybe a bit of training or something like that? I will quote from the union website:

The best way of improving your wages and conditions is by making sure you and your workmates are AWU members …

What did the Leader of the Opposition do with those union fees when he was the leader of the AWU? What did he do with that money? He gave $100,000 of union fees to a group called GetUp!. What does GetUp! do? GetUp! runs campaigns against blue-collar workers—'Join the GetUp! crew to help stop Adani once and for all'; 'Let's close down—

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The minister will resume his seat. The Manager of Opposition Business on a point of order.

Mr Tony Burke (Watson, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, I guess there are a few: it is not relevant to the question that he was asked; it is nothing to do with his portfolio; he has just strayed.

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The answer is broad—I'll say that—but there was a section at the end about any alternative policies, which is fairly broad. The minister has the call.

Mr Albanese interjecting—

Darren Chester (Gippsland, National Party, Deputy Leader of the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Grayndler says I'm 'better than this'. Well, I thought the Labor Party was better than this as well—$100,000 to GetUp! to campaign against blue-collar jobs at Adani, to campaign against Hazelwood power station, to campaign against live exports. Kevin Rudd couldn't trust the Leader of the Opposition, Julia Gillard couldn't trust the Leader of the Opposition, the AWU members couldn't trust the Leader of the Opposition and the Australian people can't trust this Leader of the Opposition.