Doug Cameron (NSW, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Human Services) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That the Senate take note of the document.

This document represents the reporting requirements under section 34A of the Tobacco Advertising Prohibition Act 1992. It is clear that tobacco causes huge problems for the health of individual Australians across this nation. It is also clear that the other side of the chamber argues that trying to do anything through legislative processes is the nanny state in action—the IPA argument that keeps getting fed to the coalition. Their view is that, if there is government intervention to do something for the collective good, suddenly you are in the nanny state.

I have always wondered why people who are supposedly sensible would swallow that argument. Given the developments over the last few weeks, however, you would have to wonder whether there is anyone of any sense sitting across the chamber—when you see this coalition government destroying itself in full view of the public.

It is probably the most unfair government that there has ever been in this country. It is clear that they are determined to attack those who cannot afford to look after themselves. In terms of the tobacco industry, one of the reasons why they would support this nanny state argument is that they get funding. Certainly the National Party continues to take funding from the tobacco industry to fight its election campaigns. There was a belated position adopted by the Liberal Party that they would not take donations from the tobacco industry, but the federal director of the National Party says, 'Like all other parties, we accept money from a broad range of organisations and individuals.' The National Party are now the only party who accepts donations from the tobacco industry—a product that destroys Australians' health, a product that kills people. They are happy to take funding from the producers of that product to fight their election campaigns. Is it any wonder that the Australian public look askance at the coalition when they talk about health, when they try and pretend that they are supporters of a good health system in this country? Destroying people's health through tobacco and then accepting funding from the tobacco industry is just not an acceptable proposition in a modern economy.

The other problem we have is that we do not really know what funding is coming to the coalition. We are starting to see through the New South Wales ICAC a little bit more about the funding of the coalition. We see that property developers are sitting in their Bentleys, handing out brown paper bags full of money to the coalition to support them against the Labor Party and other parliamentary parties in election campaigns. We have got these slush funds, the Free Enterprise Foundation. We do not really know how much money has gone into them. We do not know whether the tobacco companies are still funding the Liberal Party of Australia in an underhand way. That is probably happening, because if you look at what is happening in New South Wales you will see that funding is being funnelled through the Free Enterprise Foundation. Money is being funnelled from New South Wales into Canberra through the Free Enterprise Foundation and back into the New South Wales parliamentary campaigns for the coalition. The Cormack Foundation, with $3.9 million, is one of the biggest donors to the Liberal Party. Where does that $3.9 million come from? Nobody knows. It is probably from the tobacco companies, the big mining companies and the wealthy individuals who are all supporting the Liberal Party, because they want to give them carte blanche to get on and use the system to maximise their profits at the expense of Australians. (Time expired)

Cory Bernardi (SA, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Cameron, do you wish to continue your remarks?

Doug Cameron (NSW, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Human Services) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I seek leave to continue my remarks later.

Debate adjourned.