Jim Molan (NSW, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to address the matter of public importance that we're considering at the moment. I've listened to Senator Abetz and Senator Stoker and the logic, understanding and vision that they have shown. I have also listened to Senator Murray Watt, Senator Faruqi, Senator Polley and Senator Sheldon, and I've heard half-truths, accusations, generalities, hysterics and media runs, and that's about all I've heard. I'm not too sure what I heard from Senator Lambie.

Everyone in this house—everyone who listened to the speeches on the condolence motion yesterday or who has read the papers over the last six months—should know that this should be a time for sober, respectful reflection in a period when we're managing the drought, managing the coronavirus program, fighting the fires and commencing the bushfire recovery and when our focus should be on the needs of those impacted by these national disasters.

But we don't see that in the opposition, we don't see it in the Greens and we didn't see it from Senator Lambie.

The assessment of a national leader should never be limited to policies or plans or intentions or hopes alone but should be based on the actuality of what leadership in this case delivers, and that is security and services to the people. This Prime Minister has delivered. What a leader does is assess a situation and act for the betterment of the people, not posture or panic or rush about pointlessly, as some previous leaders have done. As a national leader, the Prime Minister has acted decisively for the benefit of the people. Perhaps what this matter of public importance does, in fact, is illustrate Senators Murray Watt, Faruqi, Polley and Sheldon's total misunderstanding of the nature of leadership, and I wonder if that says something about what they have in their own leaders. I wonder if they have never admitted that, with hindsight, they may have done things differently. I wonder if they are all the epitome of leadership in all respects. If that is the case, I stand in absolute awe of them.

Every one of us who has experienced leadership knows that it is more than acceptable to admit after an event that, with the benefit of hindsight, perhaps, indeed, we would have done things differently. So admitting that you are not perfect is a strength of leadership. Assuming that you are perfect and have all the knowledge is an arrogance that got the Rudd-Gillard-Rudd government into so much trouble. It got them into trouble on border control and on pink batts, in particular. We do not manage similar situations in the arrogant Labor way. Let's never forget that under Prime Minister Morrison's leadership—and his leadership was a key element, as Senator Abetz has reminded us—we stopped the boats. That's something that Labor could never do.

That level of leadership has been applied to all the Prime Minister's portfolios to this day. We've recovered the budget, despite being left a Labor legacy of the Rudd-Gillard-Rudd years of $46 billion. We would expect to bring that budget at least back to balance this year. Who was the Treasurer for most of that period, and who, along with his team, should be given the credit of bringing us back into balance? That was Prime Minister Morrison. The opposition may be surprised to hear that budgets don't just get themselves back into balance. They must be returned to balance by leadership, by inspiration, by discipline and by vision. That's what Prime Minister Morrison has done.

The most important thing about being a leader is the ability to inspire, to set the vision and to carry your team with you. Our strong financial management, led by the Prime Minister, has made Australia more resilient economically. As a leader, Prime Minister Morrison has been competent and successful—so competent and successful that, since his time on the boats and as Treasurer, he has won the prime ministership and, since then, an election. So let's face it: if you think that is unsuccessful leadership, maybe that explains an awful lot about Labor's lack of electoral success in the recent past.

Let us also remember that, as a federal leader, Prime Minister Morrison has not only reacted to every request that the New South Wales government made of the federal government for assistance during the bushfires, as a good leader should, but, at an appropriate time, leant forward and used the Australian Defence Force in an innovative way, which is exactly what leaders at a national level should do. I reject the matter of public importance. (Time expired)