Chris Evans (WA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Hansard source

I thank Senator McEwen for her question. The most important thing a government can do is assist industry to give people the security and dignity that comes with a job. This government is about jobs and has a proud track record when it comes to job creation. Nearly 30 million people across the globe lost their jobs as a result of the global financial crisis; however, this government saved thousands of jobs with our timely and effective economic stimulus package. Australia's unemployment rate, which is at 4.9 per cent, remains amongst the lowest in the world, the participation rate remains at a high 65.6 per cent, as at May this year, and 7,800 new jobs were created in the month of May. That was despite the challenges facing some key industries in the Australian economy, particularly as a result of the high value of the Australian dollar. The latest jobs figures are testament to the underlying strength of the Australian economy. This is at a time when the United States is recording an unemployment rate of around nine per cent and countries in Europe are recording unemployment rates close to 10 per cent. That means that one in 10 Europeans who want to work cannot find a job—a very sobering reality. Labor is the party of work, jobs and opportunity. Since coming to government we have created 258,000 more jobs than were created by the Howard government over the same period. Labor believes those who can work should work and those who want to work should have the opportunity to gain the skills they need to enter the workforce. Our budget is very much about trying to ensure all Australians get the opportunity to participate in Australia's economic success.