Assistant Minister to the Prime Minister, Assistant Minister for the Public Service, Assistant Minister to the Attorney-General
PATRICK GORMAN, ASSISTANT MINISTER TO THE PRIME MINISTER: Today is the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women. What we know is that, as this year's theme tells us, once every 10 minutes, a woman is killed. That is completely unacceptable anywhere on Earth.
When it comes to what our government is doing, we have our National Plan to End Violence. It has 113 initiatives, and we will continue to go through that work. But it's also today a chance to remember that there's so much that we can do at a community level. I know in my community of Perth, people will be marching through the silent march that is done through the streets of Perth to again, recommit themselves to the important, difficult work of eliminating violence against women.
Here in the Parliament, it is the final sitting week of 2024. It is finally time for people to make choices, because that's what we're here to do, is to make choices about the future. And when it comes to the important choices in front of the Parliament, we have our Help to Buy Bill that's been sitting in the Senate, and this week is the time for parliamentarians in The Liberal Party and The Greens to decide what they are going to do.
Are they going to support 40,000 homes, so that we can get more aged care workers and child care workers into their first home, a home they own? Or, are they going to continue with the $19 billion of cuts that Peter Dutton has proposed? That's a choice in front of the Parliament.
We have a choice as to whether we back the skills that Australia needs for the future through Fee-Free TAFE. Free TAFE is about making sure that we have the skills of the future without giving unnecessary debt for young people into the future. We've got a bill in the Parliament this week, again, a choice that people can make. Do we back Fee-Free TAFE, or do we just let the debt rack up and up?
And we have a choice when it comes to eliminating some of the student debt that's been there through indexation. Again, we have a choice; do the Liberals, Greens and others back Labor's plans to reduce student debt and fix indexation? Or do they find another excuse for division or delay?
Then, coming into the Parliament today, we have another important bill, very important for my home state of Western Australia, which is the Critical Minerals Tax Incentive and the production incentives for renewable hydrogen. This is all part of our Future Made in Australia agenda. All about making sure that we grab the opportunities in the globe and grab the jobs of the future.
Now, some in the Coalition have called this 'welfare for billionaires.' Western Australians know so, so different. This is about investing in jobs. It's about grabbing the opportunities for critical minerals like lithium, making sure that we can have that production and those jobs here, and that we incentivise private investment to invest in Australia. Because when private investment comes to Australia, that means more jobs for Australians and a brighter future for young people.
That's how we build Australia's future. It's how we build up Australia's future to be the supplier of what the world needs for the global energy transition. It's how we build Australia's future to make sure that we are a renewable energy superpower. And that will be introduced by the Treasurer today, incredibly important bill. And again, a choice. Do we back Western Australia's mining industry, or do we leave people in the cold once again?
We know when it comes to Peter Dutton's history on Western Australia, he chose not to back Western Australia when it came to our GST. He opposed WA getting a fair share of the GST. We know that Peter Dutton supported Clive Palmer in the High Court, where the West Australian Government was just trying to keep the mining industry strong during the challenging times of the pandemic.
And we know that when it comes to production tax credits and investing in critical minerals in Western Australia, Peter Dutton doesn't know where he stands. I mean, it's not that hard. It's not that hard to back the WA mining industry. And there's a bill that will come into the parliament today that gives every parliamentarian an opportunity to show that they both back the West Australian mining industry and back Australia's transition to be a renewable energy superpower.
I'll finish on housing. Getting people into homes is a priority of the Albanese Labor Government. Finding excuses for division and delay is what we've seen from The Greens Party and The Liberal Party throughout this year. It's time to stop. I'd say to Peter Dutton - you don't build Australia up with a sledgehammer. And I'd say to the Greens Party - you don't make progress by turning yourself into a human roadblock.
It's time to get Help to Buy through the Parliament. It's based on a scheme that has worked in Western Australia for 30 years. Keystart in Western Australia has helped 120,000 Western Australians into their own home. If it's good enough for WA it's good enough for the nation.
I'd say to the Liberals and the Greens, the time for blocking, division and delay is over. The time to get something done for the Australian people is now. The time to get something done is this - the final sitting week of 2024. And if you do not allow legislation that is simply about helping Australians into their own home - if you do not allow that through the Parliament - the Australian people will judge you.
