Guy Barnett (Tasmania, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I stand tonight to support the Independent Contractors Bill 2006 and the Workplace Relations Legislation Amendment (Independent Contractors) Bill 2006. In the very short time I have available, I want to make some general comments about the importance of this legislation, the importance of building a spirit of enterprise and the importance of encouraging entrepreneurialism in this country. Like the government, I have a vision for Australia—that is, one where small business is encouraged to prosper and do well, where jobs are grown, where wages increase and where we have a strong economy. As a result of the independent contractors legislation, we are providing a foundation of support for creativity, support for ensuring reward for effort and support for encouraging initiative by individual Australians—men and women alike—who are then likewise able to support their families, support their children, through the services they provide.

The Labor Party insist on using a one-size-fits-all approach to their policies and to their opposition to both these pieces of legislation. The Labor Party have a policy that would abolish Australian workplace agreements—a policy that would abolish choice for Australian working men and women. Not only do they wish to abolish choice and AWAs altogether from the industrial relations landscape in this country; they have a view that is not only moribund and antiquated but stuck in the 20th century. Their approach is to oppose for opposition’s sake, and they are fixated on, and stuck with cement boots in, history.

Our government wishes to move on. We wish to provide flexibility and choice to the Australian men and women of this country. One estimate from the Productivity Commission was that about 800,000 to 1.9 million Australian men and women make up the independent contractors of this nation. That is a lot of Australian families who can benefit under this legislation, and this is an attack by the Labor Party on those Australians. Sadly, the Labor Party wish to oppose the legislation we are putting forward tonight. What happened in 2004 was that those independent contractors and the groups that represented them said, ‘We want legislation, and we want protection,’ because the Labor state governments around this country were trying to rope in those independent contractors by saying, ‘You have a commercial relationship but we do not recognise it. We will deem you to be covered by our industrial relations legislation.’ That is unfair and unconscionable. That is why this legislation, including the principal bill, the independent contractors legislation, is before this parliament, and the amendments to it refine it and improve it. It will ensure a spirit of entrepreneurialism and a spirit of enterprise that this government wishes to enhance and encourage in this country. Tomorrow I will continue my remarks with respect to the merits of both pieces of legislation.

Debate interrupted.