Mr IAN MACFARLANE —My question is addressed to the Minister for Employment, Workplace Relations and Small Business. Minister, last Friday the Australian Industrial Relations Commission abolished the tally system for the meat industry, which will be of benefit to consumers, meat processors and beef producers in my electorate of Groom. Would you inform the House of the implications of this decision, and what does this demonstrate about the government's reform agenda and those that oppose these reforms?

Mr REITH (Workplace Relations and Small Business) —I thank the member for Groom for his question. The decision by the Industrial Relations Commission to effectively abolish tallies is a landmark decision for the entire beef industry and the meat processing industry. The practical consequence of that means more exports and more jobs, and that is fantastic news for rural and regional Australia, and it just demonstrates that, when it comes to significant reform, this government is on the job and we are doing things which are practical and worth while for rural and regional Australia. The decision does away with 43 pages of prescriptive and inefficient work practices in the federal meat industry processing award—

Mr Bevis interjecting—

Mr REITH —The interjections just show you that the ALP, as usual, was backing the AMIEU and the ACTU, even though it was costing jobs and denying rural and regional Australia investment. It just again demonstrates that when it comes to looking after rural and regional Australia there is only one side of politics—

Mr Bevis interjecting—

Mr REITH —You don't need a former secretary of the teachers union to be telling rural and regional Australia how to run a—

Mr SPEAKER —Order! The member for Brisbane and the minister will stop their across-the-chamber interjections at each other. The minister will respond to the question.

Mr REITH —The ACTU and the ALP are very disappointed at a decision which is great news for rural and regional Australia. The reason they are disappointed is that this is another example where the government's policy of award simplification is producing real benefits. It was only commonsense and good sense that the member for Dickson agreed with the government over its Workplace Relations Act to set up a framework of reform that would actually deliver real benefits to people in rural and regional Australia. The cattle council and the NFF said last week:

Sanity prevails at last. Industrial Relations Commission sinks tallies in the meat processing industry.

They went on to say:

The Australian beef industry has been working towards this result for over a decade. We were not prepared to rest until this archaic, inefficient and impractical method for determining pay levels was removed from the award. We are delighted with the outcome.

They went on to say:

Removal of the tally system will allow much greater flexibility within the workplace, contribute to greater competitiveness for the meat processing sector and ultimately impact on the viability of processing establishments. A stronger, more financially secure processing sector delivers greater profitability for the entire beef-cattle industry.

Instead of whingeing about the result, the Labor Party ought to acknowledge that this is a great win for rural and regional Australia and they ought to desist their ridiculous campaign against a process, namely award simplification, that is providing real benefits. This is just a great win. The government nominated meat processing as one of our key areas for reform. We have achieved a major breakthrough in a landmark decision and it is great news for jobs in the country.