Murray Watt challenges Michaelia Cash to IR debate ‘anywhere’

The Coalition has signalled a rejection of Labor’s call for a workplace relation debate ahead of the election.

Workplace Relations Minister Murray Watt has challenged Michaelia Cash to a policy debate. Picture: John Gass

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Workplace Relations Minister Murray Watt has challenged ­opposition frontbencher Michaelia Cash to a campaign debate on industrial relations, declaring he is willing to fly to her home state of Western Australia to debate her “anywhere, anytime” ahead of the May 3 election.

But Senator Cash, the ­Coalition’s employment and workplace relations, signalled she would not debate Senator Watt during the campaign, accusing him of “struggling for relevance”.

Rather than ministers challenging their opposition counterparts, it is opposition frontbenchers who traditionally seek to debate ministers during campaigns to try to put the spotlight on the government’s record and lift the opposition’s policy profile. But the Coalition has been largely gun-shy about backing the changes to pay and conditions sought by employer groups since a voter backlash against John Howard’s Work Choices regime contributed to the Liberals being turfed out of office at the 2007 election.

The Coalition’s proposed small-target strategy on industrial relations has been undermined by the Coalition’s backflip on public servants working from home, and an ongoing focus on its pledge to cut 41,000 public sector workers.

Labor and the union movement want to increase voter focus on industrial relations, running a sustained campaign that a vote for Peter Dutton is a vote for pay cuts and a reduction in workplace rights. They will claim Senator Cash’s refusal to debate is indicative of her refusal to be upfront about her policy agenda.

Beyond its already announced plans to deregister the CFMEU, reinstate the building union watchdog, reverse Labor’s casual changes and scrap the right to disconnect, The Australian understands the Coalition does not plan any further major workplace policy announcements ahead of May 3, and does not intend to launch a standalone industrial relations policy in the final days of the campaign.

While the Coalition will make some further policy announcements related to workplace relations, Senator Cash said “dealing with the debacle that is the CFMEU is our industrial relations priority”. In his letter to Senator Cash, Senator Watt said there had been debates between ministers and shadow ministers as well as debates between Anthony Albanese and Mr Dutton. “Workplace relations is a significant and important policy area on which there are clear differences between the ­Albanese Labor Government and the opposition,” he wrote. “It is ­essential that Australian voters be afforded the opportunity to fully understand those differences.”