JOH

LEADER OF THE OPPOSITION

THE HON. TONY ABBOTT MHR FEDERAL MEMBER FOR WARRINGAH
20 July 2013

TRANSCRIPT OF THE HON. TONY ABBOTT MHR ADDRESS TO LIBERAL NATIONAL PARTY STATE CONVENTION, BRISBANE
EO&E........................................................................................................................................... Thank you my friends. Thank you Queenslanders. It is so good to be here on the eve of an election that will decide the future of our country. I have just come from St Vincent's Hospital where I've made an announcement with Lawrence Springborg, the Health Minister representing our great Premier Campbell Newman, with Peter Dutton my Shadow Health Minister, with George Brandis, with Bill Glasson, with Teresa Gambaro. I have just made an announcement that an incoming Coalition government will give $5.5 million towards a children's palliative care facility. There are only two in Australia. There is one in Melbourne. There is one in Sydney, in my electorate. I know it well. I know the good work it does. And there must be one here in Queensland and there will be if there is a Coalition government in Canberra. My friends, it's to do things like that that we are in this business. It's to do things like that that we come to conferences like this, that we run for Parliament, that we do all the work that is necessary to win elections and to form governments. It is to make a difference to this great country of ours. But it helps if you are prepared to work with state governments and any government that I lead will work diligently, cooperatively with the state governments of our country. It helps if you are prepared to work with the community, to walk arm-in-arm with the citizens of this country that want to do the right thing by their families and by their communities and we will do that. We will walk arm-in-arm with the people of Australia, and it helps if you can build a strong economy and we will do that. We will build the stronger economy that our country needs if we are to have the better services, the better facilities that we all want. I want to say that there are lots of people on the other side of politics who would be just as committed to building this facility as we are because everyone wants to see self-evidently good things like palliative care facilities for sick kids, but our side of politics is better placed to deliver all of these good things because we want to work with people, not against them, and we will build the strong economy that makes these things possible. My friends, we are here at a critical time. You all know that. If we had been meeting a month earlier, we would have all been laughing, joking, relaxed that's what you do at these sorts of conferences! But I've got to say I am grateful to Mr Rudd because if there is one thing he has done, he has dispelled any complacency that might have existed on our side of politics.
1

We do have a fight on our hands. Let's be absolutely under no illusions, let's have no doubt, we have a fight on our hands, but I want to remind each and every one of you that nothing worthwhile is easy, and nothing is more worthwhile than giving this great country of ours the better government that it deserves. I am confident, I am so confident that we can do just that. Let's never forget that the last time I was up against Mr Rudd, he was sacked by his own party for arrogance and incompetence. And less than one month ago, fully one-third of the Labor cabinet sacrificed their political careers, in some cases surrendered their seats in Parliament, rather than serve with this man. I ask this question: if the people who know him best don't trust him, why should the Australian public? Oh, oh, but it's okay, it's okay, he's changed. He says he's changed. Well, this week, he announced a new tax, a new tax on car leases that has stopped car sales virtually dead in their tracks. It's the mining tax all over again. That's what it is. No consultation. No understanding of business and most likely a tax that stops economic activity rather than raises any revenue Well, that's exactly what we are going to get if we get another three years of Mr Rudd. In three weeks, this is what he's done. Just think of what damage he can do if he gets another three years. But it's okay. It's okay. He's just tweeted a YouTube link to his latest announcement your business model has ended, he says. That's what he just tweeted your business model has ended. Funnily enough, that tweet has just been retweeted by the motor car leasing industry. It should be retweeted again and again by all of those people whose businesses have been sabotaged by Mr Rudd and his Government. It should be retweeted by the live cattle producers of North Queensland. Their business model has been ended. It should be retweeted by the marine operators threatened by the marine protected areas. It should be retweeted by the Tasmanian forest industry being subsidised to close down. It should be retweeted, and aren't there a few of them here in Queensland, by honest people who had decent businesses insulating houses who did it safely, who didn't cause roofs to catch fire. All these people should be retweeting that announcement by Mr Rudd. Ladies and gentlemen, isn't it absolutely crystal clear that Australia deserves better? We cannot have another three years like the last six. We just can't. Cast your minds back. You know, Mr Rudd is hoping to surf back to government on a wave of amnesia and relief at the demise of an unpopular Prime Minister. Well, we don't forget and we won't let him forget. We won't let the Australian people forget. In just three years, not only have we had two Prime Ministers, we've had six small business ministers. We've had five assistant treasurers. We've had four immigration ministers. Is it any wonder they can't stop the boats? This election can't come soon enough because this election will allow the Australian people finally to pass judgment on what has been a circus, nothing more than a circus. That's what we've had on that side of the Parliament. On our side of the Parliament, for three years, the same strong team and the same clear plans. That's what the Liberal-National Coalition has offered to the Australian people every day, every week and every month of the last three years and that is what we will continue to offer the Australian people if we have the privilege of forming a government after the next election. Just think about it. Just think about what Mr Rudd's done over the last couple of weeks. Just think about the things he's done whether it be the carbon tax, whether it be borders, whether it be Labor Party governance. Do you know what he's done? He's actually admitted everything we have said about the Labor Party and about the mistakes of this government is right. That's what he has done. Everything that he has done since coming back into the Prime Ministership has been a vindication of what we have been saying, of the criticism that we have been making for the last three years. Just look at it. Look behind the slogans. Look to what he's done. Well, he's put the faceless men of the Federal Labor Party in charge of the faceless men of the New South Wales Labor Party. Won't that make a difference! We've had 30 years of corruption inside the New South Wales Labor Party and Mr Rudd says that a different lot of faceless men can fix the problems caused by that lot of faceless men in just 30 days. Well, the good Lord might have created the earth in seven, but not even Mr Rudd can fix this in 30.
2

This is not a corruption cure. It is, pure and simple, an election fix. That's what it is. He says that the caucus will only be able to sack a leader with a 75 per cent majority. That's what he says. Let's just get this right. They were so hopeless in their first three years that they had to sack the Prime Minister. They were so hopeless in their second three years that they had to sack the Prime Minister. So now they want another three years. And the current leader is so frightened of his own party that he wants to say that you can't sack me, no matter how hopeless I am. Really? Really? Does Mr Rudd seriously expect the Australian people to swallow this? Well, I have a message for Mr Rudd and for his colleagues. The Australian people are not mugs and they know, we know, that the only way to truly reform the Australian Labor Party is to give them time out in Opposition, at least three years. Mr Rudd says "By the way, you know that carbon tax that that person who we don't like to mention introduced? Well, it's gone". Second election in a row where a Labor Prime Minister has gone to the people saying "There will be no carbon tax under the government I lead". You couldn't believe it last time. You can't believe it this time. Let's think about this man's record. Let's think about it. First of all, he said that climate change was not just significant, was not just important, was not just the greatest environmental challenge, not even just the greatest economic challenge, it was nothing less than the greatest moral challenge; social, economic and moral challenge of our time. That's how important it was. What did he do? He walked away from his policy. He had this thing called a carbon pollution reduction scheme that was supposed to address this issue that was the greatest moral challenge of our time and he walked away from it. What have we had from the Labor Party since then? Well, we had a people's assembly that was going to debate this over and over and over and over again until we achieved a deep and lasting consensus. There was no way there was going to be way there was going to something like a carbon tax, whether it be fixed or floating. No way. There was going to be a deep and lasting consensus. Then, of course, Labor had to do a deal to stay in office and so we had the carbon tax. Now of course the carbon tax, which they said was so right for us, so necessary, was going to create jobs, it was going to boost businesses, it was going to do so much and just in one day it came and, sorry, it's going to kill jobs, it's hurting families, making our industries uncompetitive, so we've got to abolish it. Oh, but we are not really abolishing it. It is going to be replaced by an emissions trading scheme. Well, ladies and gentlemen, an emissions trading scheme is just a tax; it is just it is a floating tax, not a fixed tax. The interesting thing about Mr Rudd's floating tax is that it is going to go up and up and up and up. What Mr Rudd did this week was he replaced, at best, a $64 billion tax between now and 2020 with a $58 billion tax. Well, thank you very much, Mr Rudd. Thank you very much. Now, if a $64 billion tax is bad but a $58 billion tax is better, I say what's best of all is a zero billion dollar tax and that's what we will do. We will abolish the carbon tax lock, stock and barrel and there is only one political movement in this election that can give you that assurance. The other interesting thing about Mr Rudd's floating tax is that he subcontracted environmental and economic and tax policy to the people who I'm sure all of you would regard as best placed to deal with it: the bureaucrats in Brussels. If you were looking around the world to people who you would like to subcontract out an important element of Australian economic policy, who would you choose? Never mind the gnomes of Zurich, never mind the bankers of Wall Street. Oh no, he has gone to the bureaucrats of Brussels. The people who have been so good at managing the economies of Europe over the last few years. Well, welcome to Australia. Mr Rudd is rolling out the green carpet for you. Again, who does he think we are? What kind of mugs does he think the Australian people really are? Well, you can fool some of us some of the time but Ive got to say, the Australian people will never fall for the same tricks twice. We will never fall for the same tricks twice. But it's interesting. Mr Rudd is quite good at asking other people to solve our problems. He's quite good at saying "I can't do it, let's get someone else to do it". Take boat people, for instance. There wasn't a problem of boat people six years ago. There had been 12 years ago, there had been a very serious problem of boat people 12 years ago. Back in 2001, we had something like 5,000 illegal arrivals by boat. But we had a government then, a real government, an adult
3

government, a government that was prepared was honest with people, a government that was prepared to take tough decisions, a government that I was a part of and so and so was Ian Macdonald, so was George Brandis, so was Peter Dutton, so was Ian Macfarlane and we fixed the problem. We didn't ask anyone else to do it for us. Sure, we were happy to accept their help, but we didn't ask anyone else to do it for us. We did it because it was our problem and it was our responsibility to fix it. But Mr Rudd, God bless him, he wasn't man enough to leave well enough alone, so he became Prime Minister having promised a tough policy but having promised a tough policy, he said "no, no, let's be compassionate", so he closed down Nauru, he closed down Manus. He abolished temporary protection visas. He said to the people smugglers and their customers around the world no, Australia's different now, none of that nasty stuff from John Howard". Well, almost 50,000 illegal arrivals by boat later, almost 750 illegal boats later, God knows how many deaths at sea later, $10 billion at least in budget blowouts later, he has a new plan. He has a new plan. And that's the problem with Mr Rudd. He often has new ideas but he never finds a solution. He often has announcements, but he finds it incredibly difficult to actually make a difference. So, first of all, East Timor was going to fix our problem for us. Then, Malaysia was going to fix our problem for us. Then, Nauru was going to fix our problem for us. Yesterday, we finally discovered that it is PNG that's going to fix our problem for us. Now, I want to say that I am very grateful for any help that other countries are prepared to offer us in fixing this problem. But you know, the Australian people know, I know, that the only solutions to Australian problems is found here in Australia and the tougher the problem is, the more important the will, the determination and the guts of the people and the leadership of this country is if we are to address it and I will never subcontract out to other countries the solution of problems in this country. We need Australian solutions to Australian problems because no-one will ever be more committed to the welfare of this country than the people of this country and no-one should ever be more committed to the future of this country and the national interest of this country than the Prime Minister of this country. I was delighted to meet with Peter O'Neill, the Prime Minister of PNG yesterday. He is a good man and I think he genuinely wants to help. But if you want solutions for this country, you cant rely on Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea. You've got to be able to rely on the Prime Minister of Australia and I am someone the Australian people can rely on. My friends, there are two simple tests for the latest announcement from the Prime Minister. From today, does every new illegal boat arrival go to Manus Island? That's the first test. From today, does every illegal boat arrival go to Manus Island? Because if it doesn't, he's not serious. And the second test from this week, from next week, from the week after, does it actually start to stop the boats? And if they don't send people from today to Manus Island, they're not serious. If it doesn't, from today, start to make the difference, the policy won't work. It's as simple as that. And if these tests aren't passed, if these simple criteria aren't met, yet again we will have a Prime Minister who is not offering us a change of policy, he is simply offering us an election fix and haven't we seen too many of them before? Ladies and gentlemen, the next election is going to involve a basic choice from our people. The people of Australia will have to decide, who do they trust? I say to the Australian people: who do you trust? Who do you trust to end the waste? Do you trust a party which has a proven track record of getting the budget back into surplus and repaying debt, or do you trust a party and a government which is absolutely addicted to debt and deficits and a Prime Minister who began the greatest spendathon in Australia's history? Who do you trust to fix an economy? Do you trust a party that knows in the marrow of its bones that you've got to create wealth before you redistribute it, or a party which is still at heart a socialist party, and which has just got worse under Mr Rudd? I admired the changes that happened under Labor, in Labor, when Mr Hawke and Mr Keating were in charge because for a while, it seemed they were actually starting to understand that you couldn't run a
4

market economy without profitable private businesses. And, you know, Mr Rudd learnt the lesson too, or at least he told us he did. You might remember, he said just before the 2007 election "I'm a fiscal conservative". Remember that? "I'm a fiscal conservative". All my friends say to me one or two people perhaps "I'm a fiscal conservative". Thats what he said before unleashing the greatest spendathon in our history. Who do you trust to tell the truth? A party which has been consistently straight with people or a party which changes its policy, changes its story, changes its leader to suit its political convenience? Who do you trust to run a stable government? A party which has been stable and united through three-and-a-half difficult years of opposition, or a government which is constantly changing everything? Well, I think it is a pretty clear choice and I don't think the Australian people are going to have much trouble making it. My friends, this is a very important gathering. Three years ago we met in this city on the eve of an election. We don't know when the election will be called but we can hear the drums beating. We can hear the drums beating calling us, calling us to the campaign which will make such a difference. I know we're ready. I can feel it in this room, that we are ready. I know the Australian people are yearning for a government which is more worthy of their decency and their character. They know that no government is perfect. They know no government can fix every problem but they do expect a government which says what it means and does what it says. That's exactly what they'll get from the Coalition should we form a government after the election. We will abolish the mining tax because we understand that you don't speed up the slow lane of our economy by slowing down the fast lane. Mr Rudd's telling us right now that the mining boom is more or less over. Well, you know, I think he's right. Labor did its best to kill the mining boom with the mining tax, the carbon tax, union militancy, green tape, red tape. If we want the mining boom to restart, we've got to end these unnecessary new taxes. So, we'll end the mining tax, we'll end the carbon tax, we'll cut red tape, we'll have a one-stop-shop for environmental assessments so the projects this country and this state needs so desperately actually have a hope of getting under way the employment, the investment we need so desperately, if the taxes are going to be paid, that will keep the schools and the hospitals running. That's what we'll do. We'll restore the Australian Building and Construction Commission so that the rule of law will run, will operate in that difficult industry. That was something I did when I was the Workplace Relations Minister a few years ago and delivered no less than $6 billion worth of productivity improvements in that industry. We will build the roads that this state and this country so desperately needs. I'm not frightened of government spending, ladies and gentlemen. I just want it to be the right spending, not the wrong spending. We want to save money, not because we necessarily want to just put it in the bank. We want to cut wasteful spending, so we can increase productive spending and this week Warren Truss and I have been on the road, down the Bruce Highway. This highway is the lifeline of Queensland. It's the gateway to Northern Australia and I regret to say it is still a 1970s goat track. Back in the 1970s, I spent a lot of time on the spent Pacific Highway and, I tell you, I thought I was in a time warp on the Bruce Highway over the on last few days. Well, the Pacific Highway is getting better. A lot of money has been spent on the Pacific Highway and we will spend more so that it's finally duplicated all the way from Newcastle to the Queensland border. Let's face it, there are always a lot of New South Wales people who want to come up to Queensland and enjoy this great state and we should make it easier for them! But if New South Wales can have a 21st century road up its coast, why can't Queensland have 21st century road up its coast? That's why, in conjunction with Campbell Newman and Scott Emerson and the State Government we will spend almost $10 billion during the next decade on this highway to give the people of Queensland the better, safer road that they so badly need and that they so deserve. But we won't just stop there. We will build the Toowoomba Range Crossing. And we won't neglect Brisbane. We will put $1 billion towards the Gateway Motorway upgrade.

My friends, I know that our best years as a people are still ahead of us. We know, every Australian knows, that we can be so much better than we have been over the last few years. It's not that our people have fallen into a funk, it's not that our people have lost their drive or their energy, it's not that our businesses have suddenly become defeatist. No, none of that's happened. What has happened is that we have had a government for the last three years, for the last six years, that has not been as good as we are. That's what has to change. There is nothing wrong with the Australian people, but by God there has been so much wrong with the Australian Government over the last six years. I want to say how proud I am of the team that I have the honour to lead. I really am so proud to be leading a team of fine Australians, a team of people that represents the breadth and the depth of our great people. Every walk of life just about is represented in the team of people who are contesting seats that we do not hold. I see Bill Glasson there, one of the finest doctors in our country. Not just a fine doctor but a great citizen, who served his country not just in white coat and stethoscope but in the uniform of our armed forces. I see David Lin sitting down here in the front row, and isnt it nice to be a political movement that knows who our candidate Rankin is? You know, 30 years ago we weren't such a multicultural party but we are today and I am so proud that our party has grown with our nation. You look around our candidates, doctors, nurses, policemen, teachers, soldiers, small business people, lawyers, farmers. We have got a Father of the Year in Ron Delezio running for us in New South Wales. We have a Mother of the Year, Bernadette Black, running for us in Tasmania and if every one of the Coalition's candidates is elected, the most common surname of our party won't be Smith, won't be Jones, won't be Bishop, it certainly won't be Abbott, it will be Nguyen. Andrew, it's great to be with you here mate, thank you so much for being with us. It's a great team for a great people and a great country. There is almost nothing wrong with our country that a change of government wouldn't improve. So, that's what we are working towards. Whenever the election is called, that's what we are working towards. With every fibre of our being, with every waking moment, we are working towards a change of government. We know it won't be easy but we know it will be so worthwhile when it happens. Australia is ready. We are ready. I say to the people of Australia give us the chance and we will not let you down. [ends]