Shock horror: a Labor luminary who thinks it’s only good sense to work with business

Albo’s back in business. The Weekend Australian, June 23:

Anthony Albanese has laid out his blueprint for government, calling on Labor to follow the lead of Bob Hawke and Paul Keating and ­engage with big business, repudiating Bill Shorten’s anti-business crusade … Mr Albanese said “our job is not to sow discord, it is to bring people together in the service of the national interest”.

Rivalry, what rivalry? The Australian, June 24:

Labor frontbencher Jim Chalmers says he does not believe his colleague Anthony Albanese was stoking leadership tensions … Labor MPs have reportedly been “violently angry” about Mr Albanese’s speech, but Mr Chalmers said he was not among them, and was more likely to get emotional if Queensland lost (last night’s) State of Origin clash.

This means war. The Daily Telegraph, December 6 last year:

Bill Shorten declared “war” on big business … at a recent private boardroom lunch with corporate bigwigs. The Daily Telegraph can reveal that during the “unfriendly” lunch with the Business Council of Australia two weeks ago the ALP leader warned industry to “expect nothing from a Shorten Labor government”. A source also said he boasted how “it’s good for his political prospects to be at war with big business”.

Referendum on the big end of town. Bill Shorten doorstop, April 30:

Labor believes that the next federal election will be a referendum on whether or not the Australian people want to give a massive corporate tax cut to the big end of town — to multinationals and the big banks. It is expected that on budget night, some $80 billion is forecast by this government to be handed out in corporate tax cuts, much of which will go to the big end of town, to multinationals, to foreign shareholders and, of course, the big banks. It is predicted that about $17bn in taxpayer money will be handed — in the form of tax concessions and reductions — to the big banks over the next 10 years.

Shorten, the battlers’ friend. Question time, February 8 last year:

Mr Harbourside Mansion (Malcolm Turnbull) is attacking the standard of living of over a million Australian families. The story of these cuts (to ­social welfare) today is that the Prime Minister is taking $4.7bn from Australian families and yet he proposes giving $7.4bn to big banks in tax ­giveaways.

Malcolm Turnbull charges Shorten with hypocrisy in question time, 9news.com.au, June 19:

“This is the man who sucked up and grovelled to (late billionaire businessman) Dick Pratt,” (Turnbull) shouted. “He took free trips overseas. He drank the champagne … I’ve never seen anybody more sycophantic in the presence of a billionaire than a Labor politician and none more so than this sycophant, this groveller, this man who abandoned workers, while he tucked his knees under the Pratts’ table.”

Shorten, the Labor-in-power version. Parliament, August 23, 2011:

Cutting the company income tax rate increases domestic productivity and domestic investment. More capital means higher productivity and economic growth, and leads to more jobs and higher wages.

And Shorten talking sense to an Australian Council of Social Service audience, March 30, 2011:

Friends, corporate tax reform helps Australia’s private sector grow and it creates jobs right up and down the income ladder.