Mr McMULLAN —My question is directed to the Prime Minister. Prime Minister, what legislative or other changes will your government initiate to ensure that future workers confronting the circumstances faced by the miners of Cobar and the meatworkers of Grafton, who are outside parliament today, have their legal entitlements guaranteed?

Mr HOWARD (Prime Minister) —I thank the member for Canberra for that question. I think it is an important one. I might remind him that the preference provisions in the insolvency law under which these workers are operating at present are yours.

Mr McMullan —They are yours.

Mr HOWARD —We must get that straight. You had 13 years to amend the law to give them a better deal and you did not. Now you have the hide to come along and say, `Why doesn't the coalition do this and why doesn't the coalition do that?' I will tell you something that the coalition is doing. The coalition, through the ASC, is ensuring that legal action is being taken so that, if there is any evidence that there has been a breach of directors' duties, those directors will be brought to account.

The proposition that in some way there should be an even higher gradation of preference given would, as I think you know and many on the frontbench know, interfere very significantly with the whole basis on which loans are made available and on which security is being given. The alternative that has been suggested—that some kind of trustee guarantee system be introduced similar to what operates in other countries—is one that we are looking at but it does start with the enormous disability that it would involve contributions from companies that treat their employees decently and properly and it would probably impose burdens on many honest, soundly based companies that it would be unreasonable to do.

I think it is an extraordinarily unfortunate situation. We are examining ways in which bona fide help can be given without creating difficult precedents. Let it be remembered that the disability under the law that they are complaining about is a disability under your law and nobody else's.