Page 2035 - Week 06 - Thursday, 8 June 2006

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Question put:

That this bill be agreed to.

The Assembly voted—

Ayes 9

Noes 6

Mr Barr

Mr Gentleman

Mrs Dunne

Mr Stefaniak

Mr Berry

Mr Hargreaves

Mr Mulcahy

Mr Corbell

Ms Porter

Mr Pratt

Dr Foskey

Mr Stanhope

Mr Seselja

Ms Gallagher

Mr Smyth

Question so resolved in the affirmative.

Bill agreed to.

Adjournment

Motion (by Mr Corbell) proposed:

That the Assembly do now adjourn.

Unemployment

MR MULCAHY (Molonglo) (11.00): I would like to use this opportunity to make some comments on recent figures that have been released by the federal government on unemployment in Australia. I was very pleased to discover that Australia’s unemployment rate fell to only 4.9 per cent in May 2006, which is the first time that the unemployment rate has fallen below five per cent since 1976. According to labour force figures by the Australian Bureau of Statistics, 55,800 Australians found a new job, taking the total number of Australians who are employed full time to a staggering 7.254 million, which is the highest number ever recorded, a figure with which we should all be very pleased.

These figures, as impressive as they are, not only indicate that Australia is on a very firm footing economically but also expose the shameful scaremongering of the federal and state Labor parties and the ACTU for what it is: hysterical and baseless criticism of a federal government industrial relations policy that is producing tangible results and positive reform of Australian workplaces. I know that these positive outcomes have been spoken about before, but I do believe it is well worth reminding our colleagues on the other side of the chamber how wrong they have been about WorkChoices and the federal government workplace reforms.

The fact is that the Howard government workplace relations reforms since 1996 have helped to deliver higher wages, higher productivity, more jobs, lower interest rates, and record levels of employment, as we hear from the new figures that have been released today. Ultimately, the best protection for workers and the best guarantee of job security and higher wages is a strong economy—and probably not working with the ACT

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