Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Assistant Minister for Education and Training) Share this | Hansard source

I can absolutely confirm to Senator Johnston that there are no circumstances in which unqualified electricians or other tradespeople would be entitled to work in Australia. We have been working to try to make sure that those who spread these falsehoods understand that they are wrong. Relevant departments, including my own, have been correcting a number of inaccuracies and meeting with people who are making these claims about unlicensed workers operating in Australia. They even met with the Electrical Trade Union on 8 July to attempt to set them straight. But I note that they continue their misleading campaign. They are running robocalls around the country, claiming, 'Electricians who do not meet our licensing or registration standards will still be able to enter Australia and do electrical work.' This is just wrong and false. What is worse though is that they are running it as a scare campaign. They say that people's property, safety and, most importantly, people's lives are at risk. This is a complete falsehood from the unions, from Mr Shorten and from all of those opposite. (Time expired)