Senator POLLEY (3:22 PM) —What remarkable contributions from those opposite. I have been in this place serving the Tasmanian community for five years now and it is a great privilege to do that. But to come in here today and to stand up and talk about a legislative program of the nature that the opposition were trying to assert quite frankly does them no favours at all because this is no different to any other time of the year. I want to reiterate, as the minister did in his comments, that on every occasion when we have tried to increase the amount of sitting time or to extend the sitting time those opposite are the first ones out the door.

If we want to talk about the legislation that is on the program for this week it includes the Tax Laws Amendment (2010 Measures No. 4) Bill. The Higher Education Support Amendment Bill, if I recall, was debated last night. There is the Social Security Legislation Amendment (Connecting People with Jobs) Bill. We also have the National Health Amendment (Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme) Bill and the Telecommunications Legislation Amendment (Competition and Consumer Safeguards) Bill. I think the contributions that senators make in relation to the address-in-reply to the Governor-General’s speech are significant. It was a very important speech that was delivered in this place outlining the program that this government has. Obviously, it really narks those opposite because they cannot come to terms with the fact that the Australian community rejected them. Why did they reject them? It was because they had no plan.

Senator Abetz —You got a great majority.

Senator POLLEY —We had the minister in question time today talking about the National Broadband Network. Senator Abetz, I will take your interjection because you know very well that the leader of the opposition in Tasmania, Mr Will Hodgman, supports the National Broadband Network—I know you do not always get on with him but he did get something right in recent years. Even your good, very close colleague Senator Barnett has come out publicly and said that the National Broadband Network was a contributing factor as to why the Liberals did so very poorly in Tasmania in all five electorates. In your own area in southern Tasmania you should hang your head in shame as to how poorly the Liberals did in Denison.

If we want to talk about our program, let us talk about the economy and let us talk about jobs. Let us talk about the opposition’s record on those in the way you voted and opposed every stimulus package in this place. The Australian community saw through that. They appreciate the fact that this government stood up to ensure that Australian families had jobs and that there was job security. We have things already in place that we have already built on since 2007, one of which is the way we have looked after Australian pensioners. We have given them a pension increase. We have actually delivered tax cuts. We have done more to encourage and support small business than those opposite. When you talk about the government not having any agenda for climate change, I think that is just hilarious. Those sceptics opposite are talking about the government not having a program. Those on this side of the chamber at least are prepared to put the facts on the record in terms of what we are doing.

The most important thing that the Australian people want is a strong economy. They need to know that their representatives are listening to them. We are delivering on the economy. We have done better than any other developed country in the way that we have been able to come out of the global financial crisis. With respect to having no agenda it is us on this side that are ensuring that Australian taxpayers get value for their investment in what the mining tax will deliver. There is also the National Broadband Network and what that will do for health, education, productivity, tourism and small businesses. There are also the jobs that will create. The list goes on and on.

There is what we are doing for education. It was this government that actually invested in infrastructure—the Building the Education Revolution. There are a lot of Liberals turning up at all these school openings. They are the ones who want to have their photos in the school newsletters because they know, as the Tasmanian community knows only too well, particularly in the building industry, what that investment has done. (Time expired)