Richard Colbeck (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research, Senator Carr. I refer to Paul Howes's comments on Lateline last night that Austral­ian manufacturing is in its 'worst crisis since the Great Depression' and that compre­hensive plans are now needed for each of a number of industries. Given that the minister's 10-minute statement yesterday to the Senate on industry policy did not contain a single new policy or program idea, does the government believe Mr Howes is wrong?

Kim Carr (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the senator for his question. I appreciate that he has actually had a look at the statement that was put down yesterday. It outlined a long-term vision for manufactur­ing in this country and highlighted the approach the government is taking to deal with the largest structural change we have seen for over two generations. And, of course, it is not a policy position that we have come out with in a kneejerk manner. It is not a policy response that we have come out with as if events had just occurred. From the day this government was elected we have worked on processes to ensure we have in train a policy response to the substantial changes that are occurring in our society. We understand the critical role science and research plays. The statement yesterday went to the process that we have in train to devel­op global R&D centres in this country—

Opposition Senators:

Opposition senators interjecting—

John Hogg (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! Senator Carr, resume your seat. When there is silence, we will proceed. The minister is entitled to be heard in silence.

Kim Carr (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

What we have in train are processes to ensure that science and research are at the core of the transformation that is occurring in Australian companies as a result of the enormous pressures they are under. This is in the tradition of Labor. We have put forward a 10-year innovation strategy, Powering ideas. We have a 13-year strategy for a new car plan.

Richard Colbeck (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I rise on a point of order on relevance. It was a specific question relating to whether the minister believes Mr Howes is wrong. It was not an opportunity for him to repeat the statement that he made yesterday. I was asking whether he believes that Mr Howes is wrong. I would ask you to bring him to the question.

Joe Ludwig (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Manager of Government Business in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I rise on the point of order. The point of order taken was in relation to whether the minister was being directly relevant. The minister was being directly relevant. He was answering the question. What the opposition have now done is pick out not their entire question but a part of the question. The minister was addressing the entire question in his answer and was being directly relevant to it.

John Hogg (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The minister is addressing the question.

Kim Carr (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It is obvious that I do need to encourage some of those who obvi­ously inhabit the lower depths of the ponds in various parts of this country. Clearly we have a gross misunderstanding here about what the English language means.

Senator Abetz interjecting—

We have the beady eyes of some of the great trolls of Australian politics staring at us now.

John Hogg (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Carr, just address the issue. Address the issue and address your comments to me.

Kim Carr (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I am very much addressing the issue. The fact that the Liberal Party has not even signed on to the Austra­lian steel industry transformation scheme, that the Liberal Party actually opposes the policies we have in the automotive trans­formation scheme— (Time expired)

Richard Colbeck (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask a supplementary question. Is it true that the Steel Industry Innovation Council, of which Mr Howes is a member, has not met at any time in the last six months and therefore has not even discussed the issue of the loss of 1,400 jobs at BlueScope and OneSteel or the intro­duction or implementation of the govern­ment's carbon tax?

Kim Carr (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

We discuss matters with every member of the innovation council on an ongoing basis. There is a meeting that is scheduled to be called and I understand that everyone who participates in that council is now available to attend. We have a process of deep consultation with the industry and we have an Australian steel industry trans­formation scheme, a program that you do not support, just as you do not support the Aus­tralian automotive transformation scheme and just as you are actually proposing to reduce support for Australian manufacturing. It must be a very difficult thing for you to suggest that you are interested in whether or not a meeting has occurred when you actually have a policy that would decimate Australian manufacturing and when you have no commitment to this industry.

When the schemes were introduced, Mr Truss told the House:

You cannot simply keep coming into this House, decade after decade, with another massive assistance package for the car industry.

That is the approach that you have adopted when it comes to assisting blue collar workers. That is the approach that we have seen time and time again. (Time expired)

Richard Colbeck (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask a further supplementary question. Given that the manufacturing industry has lost over 105,000 jobs over the last three years, could the minister advise if this is the most rapid rate of job losses in the industry in the history of Australia?

Kim Carr (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I would not want to provide you with historical facts on that matter; they might get in the way of an otherwise great scare campaign! What I can tell you is this: the job losses across Australia are highly regrettable, but we know that job losses are at different rates across the country. In the last 12 months, in the June quarter to June quarter figures that I have, significant job losses were 1,100 in New South Wales, 2,200 in the Northern Territory, 2,000 in the Australian Capital Territory and 15,200 in Queensland. But there were increases in manufacturing jobs of 17,200 in Victoria, 4,900 in Western Australia and 1,500 in Tasmania. So when it comes to the question of the patterns of job creation and distri­bution across the country you will see quite a different range of industry development occurring. If you look at the actual participation in new contracts in mining projects, again, you will see very significant levels of— (Time expired)

John Hogg (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I understand that Senator Xenophon has an arrangement with Senator Madigan today to swap questions.

Government senators interjecting—

Order, Senator Conroy and others!