Bill Shorten: Time to focus on a fair go for everyone
NO one who saw Malcolm Turnbull’s election night tantrum will ever forget it — the Prime Minister of Australia, yelling at the nation. An angry midnight rant, writes Bill Shorten.
Opinion
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NO one who saw Malcolm Turnbull’s election night tantrum will ever forget it.
The Prime Minister of Australia, yelling at the nation. An angry midnight rant, filled with wild accusations. That’s the moment I knew the Liberals had learnt nothing from the election campaign, or the result.
One way or another, we’ve seen it every day since.
We see it with the way the Treasurer and the Prime Minister stubbornly refuse to do anything serious about housing affordability by reforming negative gearing.
Instead, they’re backing tax handouts for property speculators and telling young people who simply can’t afford their first home to just “get rich parents”.
We see it with the Liberal Party’s continuing attacks on Medicare, making it harder and more expensive for Australians to see a doctor. The same cuts to Medicare they took to the election are still in their budget.
We see it with their cuts to schools, to TAFE, to apprenticeships and universities. We see it with the way this government constantly seeks to protect the big four banks from the scrutiny and accountability of a royal commission.
None of this is about the sales pitch, or the spokesman. It’s about the substance. The Liberals haven’t learnt that their priorities are the problem.
Because Australians don’t make up their minds on the back of a glossy advertising campaign, the Australian people measure their governments on performance. Australians judge prime ministers by what they do, by the choices they make.
And whether it’s pensioners or people who rely on penalty rates, Malcolm Turnbull always chooses the big end of town over Australians who are struggling to make ends meet.
That’s why I was astounded to read in The Daily Telegraph on Monday that the Liberal election review didn’t recommend a single change in policies, just a shift in tactics.
The simple message was that next time around the Liberals would be meaner and trickier, dirtier and nastier. More personal attacks rather than plans for Australia.
How pathetic is that?
Peta Credlin: It’s time our politicians saw the light
How about trying to govern the country instead? How about you try putting forward some policies? How about you do something to help Australians with the real challenges they face every day?
Labor’s got a plan to rescue TAFE, to get more Australians training as apprentices and to put more Australian apprentices to work on big infrastructure projects.
We’ve got a plan to put the great Australian dream back in reach for first-home buyers and help repair the budget along the way.
We’ve got a plan to crack down on rorts in the work visa system, to stop dodgy employers bringing in workers and exploiting them while Australians miss out on jobs.
We’ve got a plan to protect penalty rates, to make sure Australians who give up their weekends and public holidays to provide for their family are fairly paid for the sacrifices they make. Labor is focused on what matters to Australians: jobs, education, Medicare and housing affordability.
The Liberals are only focused on their own selfish political interests.
If the Prime Minister wants to spend his whole life talking about me and my party, fine. I’d rather have a debate about the future of the nation — and I think Australians would prefer that, too.
Bill Shorten MP is federal Opposition Leader
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