Patrick Gorman
Perth · Australian Labor Party · Australia
“It was closed by the former Barnett Liberal government and sat vacant for years, but, again, because of decisions of this Labor government, we have homes being built—affordable homes, specialist disability homes. This will bring even more people into Highgate and the wonderful Beaufort Street strip.”
“One of the things I love doing in this place, as I know do you, Deputy Speaker Sharkie, is to bring the words of our constituents into this parliament. After the budget, I received this email from Perth constituent Sebastian, who said: Dear Patrick, I'm writing to actually thank you for standing up for young Australians.”
“What we also know is that those who are doing all the right things—they're working hard, they're saving, they're trying to get their first home—are struggling, and that's where our five per cent deposit program comes in.”
“Every Australian deserves a place to call home, and that is what the Albanese government's budget delivers. Our $47 billion Homes for Australia plan and our budget provide for even more homes, more support to renters and more support for Australians getting into homeownership. In Perth, we're getting on with the job on the ground.”
“It builds on the work that we've done when it comes to the Fair Work Legislation Amendment (Secure Jobs, Better Pay) Act, making sure that workers can earn more and keep more of what they earn, and the work we're doing when it comes to those who need more support in our labour market, including the work when it comes to the program we cal…”
“I want to thank all members for their contribution as we consider in detail the important work the government is doing in employment and workplace relations. More jobs, higher wages, lower income taxes—that's what Labor governments deliver and that's what this Labor government is delivering.”
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“In this place we have an important responsibility to listen to the voices of young Australians. I had the opportunity to do that last month when, alongside my colleague Senator Dorinda Cox, I hosted a schools youth forum. What the students from schools across the Perth electorate said to me was that they wanted to have more opportunities to engage with their elected members and to feel that they were genuinely heard in those discussions. Today, through the Raise Our Voice campaign, I have the privilege of raising the voice of one young leader in my electorate. I'll be sharing the words of Chloe, who is a student at Perth Modern School. She has chosen to write about the importance of making sure that we invest in education. Her speech is as follows: I am Chloe, a 15-year-old Perth Modern School student from the Perth electorate.”
“1) 2025-2026 is called on in the Federation Chamber, consideration of the schedule being in accordance with the following order, and the question 'that the proposed expenditure be agreed to' being put for each portfolio in accordance with the timeframes indicated below, or earlier if no further Members rise to speak: (a) Education Portfolio, at the first opportunity after 6 pm on Tuesday, 7 October; (b) Defence Portfolio, at the first opportunity after 6.45 pm on Tuesday, 7 October; (c) Foreign Affairs and Trade Portfolio, at the first opportunity after 7.30 pm on Tuesday, 7 October; (d) Treasury Portfolio, at the first opportunity after 11.15 am on Wednesday, 8 October; (e) Finance Portfolio, at the first opportunity after 12 noon on Wednesday, 8 October; (f) Employment and Workplace Relations Portfolio, at the first opportunity after 12.45 pm on Wednesday, 8 October; (g) Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry Portfolio, at the first opportunity after 1.30 pm on Wednesday, 8 October; (h) Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water Portfolio, at the first opportunity after 4.45 pm on Wednesday, 8 October; (i) Attorney-General's Portfolio, at the first opportunity after 5.15 pm on Wednesday, 8 October; (j) Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications, Sport and the Arts Portfolio, at the first opportunity after 6 pm on Wednesday, 8 October; (k) Industry, Science and Resources Portfolio, at the first opportunity after 6.45 pm on Wednesday, 8 October; (l) Home Affairs Portfolio, at the first opportunity after 7.30 pm on Wednesday, 8 October; (m) Social Services Portfolio, at the first opportunity after 11.15 am on Thursday, 9 October; (n) Health, Disability and Ageing Portfolio, at the first opportunity after 12.15 pm on Thursday, 9 October; and (o) Prime Minister and Cabinet Portfolio, at the first opportunity after 12.45 pm on Thursday, 9 October; (3) any questions necessary to complete the consideration in the Federation Chamber of each of the bills being put immediately without debate; (4) the bills returning to the House and, when reported, any question or questions necessary to complete the remaining stages of each of the bills to be put without amendment or debate; and (5) any variation to this arrangement being made only on a motion moved by a Minister.”
“On behalf of the Leader of the House, I move: That so much of the standing and sessional orders be suspended as would prevent the following from occurring in relation to proceedings on Appropriation Bill (No. 1) 2025-2026, Appropriation Bill (No. 2) 2025-2026 and Appropriation (Parliamentary Departments) Bill (No. 1) 2025-2026: (1) on Tuesday, 7 October: (a) when Appropriation Bill (No. 1) 2025-2026 is called on, the questions being put without delay or debate on any amendments moved to the motion for the second reading and on the second reading; and (b) the bills standing referred to the Federation Chamber; (2) when the order of the day for the further consideration of Appropriation Bill (No.”
“It is an absolute honour to serve in this place alongside so many talented members. We had an excellent contribution of members before the election. We added to that at the election, while retaining everyone who wanted to recontest their seat on our side of the place. That is a unique outcome in Australian electoral history, and it is one that I'm proud to have played a very small part in achieving. I'm looking forward to the work of the 48th Parliament.”
“Those were two really exciting and nice moments. It's always good to have a campaign baby in tow. I'd also like to say a special thankyou to Marissa Williams, who left my office at the conclusion of the term to spend more time with her two excellent and lovely children, Jude and Henry. Marissa has done an incredible amount of service, not just to me but to the Labor team in Western Australia, and I wish her the very best. I'd like to thank equally the campaign committee who were there to tell me the hard truths and to make sure I stayed on message and kept my diary of commitments and everything else. Thank you to Ali Vaughan, Bob Kucera, Jimmy Murphy, Marije van Hemert, Megan Anwyl, Rachael Roberts and Steven Graves, and thanks to Marije for bringing along Baby Iris from time to time. I'll finish my comments there.”
“I'm really grateful for that support, as I am to my brother-in-law Andrew. I want to say thank you to the team that I work with: Daniel Sutherland, Anna Churack, Kiani Mannon-Bakaj, Raz Abdullah, Kelly Ovens, Marissa Williams, Shai Macpherson, Martina Ucnikova, Katelyn Stubberfield, Rukshan De Alwis, Matilda McCagh and Harry Saunders. They all made an outstanding contribution and were fantastic campaigners. People are very proud, and rightly proud, of the results that they achieved. One of the other joys if you're in this place long enough is to see your staff make big life decisions, and we got to welcome Baby George. Congratulations to Martina for adding Baby George to the broader office family, and, similarly, congratulations to Daniel Sutherland for adding Baby Daphne to the broader office family.”
“The incredible support that she provides both humbles me and makes me feel incredibly loved, and I'm really glad that she's been with me for all those elections. As a result, at the end of this sitting fortnight, we will celebrate our 10th wedding anniversary. I want to thank our children, Leo and Ruby, who both enthusiastically demanded their own mini campaign shirts and enthusiastically sat at the front when the member for Sydney came over and launched the campaign. They only interjected around seven times during her speech, but it was great to have their support. To my family—to my mum and dad, Wendy and Ron, who were there at prepoll in Morley pretty much every day, and to my brother Joey: I'm very grateful for your support. My mother-in-law, Diane, handed out at an election for the very first time.”
“At the same time, down the road in Hyde Park, a park that is loved by my community, we've seen a huge removal of trees because of the horrific impact of the shot-hole borer, which is killing trees throughout the Perth metropolitan area. I must say I hope it never comes to this beautiful part of the country on the east coast. We're partnering with the Mayor of the City of Vincent, Alison Xamon, with a significant investment in the replanting of Hyde Park. In my final moments, I want to quickly thank some—and I can't do all—of those who I've been fortunate to have support me to continue to serve in this place. Firstly, I want to thank my family. My wife, Jess, has gone through four elections with me. Every election is its own unique challenge.”
“It's a fantastic science education facility that has serviced generations of Western Australians and inspired them to go on to careers in the resources industry, science, technology and so much more. However, its home at City West is looking pretty shabby these days. It's time for a new forever home for Scitech. The Albanese government will be there in partnership with the state government to get that done. Similarly, we will be there when it comes to the urban forest project turning what was a tip, or a dump, in Bayswater into a new urban forest next to the Eric Singleton Bird Sanctuary, making sure we've got the urban forest and the urban tree canopy we rightly need.”
“The first is the partnership we've got when it comes to the Collie Battery Energy Storage System. This is significant investment in battery storage. I've been down there to see it myself. It's going to make a huge difference to the stability of the WA grid, but it's also making a huge difference in reducing WA's emissions. In the last term, I had the joy of riding on the Perth-based Morley-Ellenbrook train line. I'm looking forward to further investments in METRONET that will get more people into our CBD, supporting the businesses of Perth. The other one that is great for everyone who is young or young at heart is Labor's $100 million commitment to invest in the future of Scitech. Scitech is the Questacon of the west.”
“One of the things you couldn't avoid during the federal election campaign was the debate around the GST. When I was first elected to this place, I said, 'Every Western Australian is sick of debating the GST.' I still believe that. The reason I believe it is that I think we finally have a set of policy settings that appropriately recognise the interests of every part of the Commonwealth, and the No Worse Off Guarantee that our government has extended has meant we can keep the GST debate off the front pages, allowing us to focus on the serious challenges Australia faces. It will also implement the 2026 Productivity Commission review, as was agreed between the McGowan-Cook government in 2018. There are a lot of things I'd like to cover, but I'll just touch on a few things that make me really proud of the work this government is doing.”
“First is my friend Trish Cook, who had a very long wait for the results on the seat of Bullwinkel. At the time, when she was being asked, 'How do you feel, waiting for this?' she replied: 'I'm a midwife; I'm used to long waits. I don't mind at all.' As a result, we now have our tenth nurse in the parliament. It's great to have the member for Bullwinkel here. Equally, we have Tom French joining us. Both a lawyer and a sparky, he brings a full spectrum of skills, and it will be very handy having him in the parliament. I know he'll make a great contribution to building Australia's future. There's also my friend Senator Ellie Whitaker, who spent most of 2025 campaigning for others as party secretary but has also joined us, which is great to see.”
“We welcomed him for the campaign launch in my seat of Perth and, over the course of the last term of government, Western Australia welcomed the Prime Minister 35 times. I got to stand with him during the campaign to announce a massive investment in the Perth ferry network, which is currently just from Perth to South Perth and back—lovely trip, great if you want to go to the zoo—but we know that we can do more. Let's start doing the work to bring it up to Claisebrook, bring it up to Maylands, get it over to the Optus Stadium and give Perth the ferry network that the Swan River rightly deserves. I mentioned the candidates that didn't quite make it to this place despite their excellent campaigning efforts. I do want to say, there are three great new Western Australians in this parliament.”
“If we were standing here now and that plan had gone through, it would have resulted in chaos. It would have resulted in huge blowouts in wait times and terrible-quality policy advice. It would have been deeply destructive across the country, and not just here in Canberra. Thousands of Commonwealth public servants come into my electorate every day, working at home affairs, the tax office and Services Australia, doing excellent work supporting their fellow Australians across the country. It would have been a wrecking ball across the country for the services Australians rely upon. One of the other highlights of the recent election campaign was the number of times we were able to welcome the Prime Minister to the great state of Western Australia.”
“It was deeply disappointing to see—and I hope we don't see it in another election campaign any time soon—the mean, nasty, inappropriate attacks on the Public Service that came from the Liberal Party as they sought to campaign their way into office. The Australian people rejected their attacks on work from home. They rejected their attacks on the Public Service. They rejected the idea that the Liberal Party and the National Party have put out there that somehow it's acceptable that veterans were waiting months, if not years, for their packages. That was the proposition that was put by those on the opposite side. I was proud to stand against the plan put forward by the now leader of the opposition and others to cut 41,000 jobs from the Public Service.”
“You are an excellent advocate for standing up for public servants and the important work they do, whether it be clearing backlogs, preparing us for natural disasters or providing support for people at times where they may have lost everything and the only thing they want is for a public servant to pick up the phone and give them some financial assistance so they can get back on their feet. We've got an outstanding public service in this country, much of it—but not all of it—here in the nation's great capital. I was really proud to stand with you and Labor colleagues across the country, including the Minister for the Public Service, in advocating for the important work the Public Service does.”
“We did excellent work, and I want to commend all ministers involved, especially the trade minister, in removing some of those impediments to trade, especially the work that was done to support some of the industries like barley, crayfish and wine in Western Australia. We'll continue to do that work to expand Western Australia's and Australia's trade relationships, making sure that we have an economy that does provide those additional opportunities that come from our engagement with the world. Deputy Speaker Payne, I want to talk about something that I know is close to your heart, which is the importance of our public service workforce.”
“Why try?' We say, 'It's worth trying to do the hard things to make sure you deliver for the people who sent us here.' And we do this all against the backdrop of huge global uncertainty. We don't know where some world events will go. We know that we've had huge inflation challenges coming in from overseas. We know that there's more we can do when it comes to building economic resilience and supporting Australians' prosperity here at home, recognising that part of that is about how we engage constructively in the affairs of our region. It's also about recognising how we show to people here in Australia that our engagement with the world helps us at home. The Prime Minister, when he was in Western Australia a number of times, brought out the fact that one in four jobs in Australia rely upon trade.”
“They stand because they want to make sure that, wherever people are in this country, people can choose to vote for a Labor candidate. One of the reasons so many people did was that this is a government that, after a decade of inaction, took housing seriously. We stood there saying that the idea that you want to own your first home should not be out of reach for any Australian. We put a huge focus on first home buyers, and we saw that through our Help to Buy scheme, which is going to help some 40,000 people over the next four years. We saw that in the agenda we took of building 1.2 million homes in the next five years. Those opposite said: 'That sounds hard.”
“But I just want to pay tribute to the Labor candidates who stood in WA. Tabitha Dowding ran an excellent campaign in Forrest, and I don't think it's the last we'll see of Tabitha. Jarrad Goold in Canning did an outstanding job. Jarrad had an interesting challenge in that he was running against a Liberal who didn't want to use any Liberal branding and was trying to pretend they were an Independent, but Jared did a great job, despite those odd circumstances. Darren Moir stood in O'Connor. He's a great farmer and did an excellent job there. My friend Karen Wheatland stood in the seat of Durack. City of Perth councillor Viktor Ko stood in the seat of Curtin, and Deep Singh stood for the Senate. It really is a contribution to democracy that people stand even if they know they may not succeed in getting into parliament.”
“I went down with the Labor candidate for Forrest, Tabitha Dowding, to announce that we would have that in Bunbury, a growing region with such huge potential when it comes to renewable energy and when it comes to the future of manufacturing in Western Australia and indeed the rest of Australia. Just on that, when you come and have the privilege of giving an address-in-reply, you reflect on the fact that you are fortunate to get here, but not everyone you might campaign alongside does. So I want to pay a little tribute just to those from my party who stood in Western Australia for seats and may sometimes, through no fault of their own—I don't want to live in a country where everyone votes the same way, but some of them worked incredibly hard and gave up weeks and weeks of their time.”
“You can simply pick up the phone and call 1800MEDICARE and get access to the health care that you need within minutes of realising that you might need some medical assistance. Not just that but 1800MEDICARE will be free, like so much of the Medicare system. You will not have to pay a cent. The first question you'll be asked when you call 1800MEDICARE will not be, 'What's your credit card number?' It will be, 'What is your Medicare card number?' if you've got time, or they'll get straight on to referring you to the appropriate services. We said that we also wanted to build on the success of the excellent Medicare urgent care clinics, including the one on Rudloc Road in my electorate, by having Medicare mental health centres.”
“I'm really excited to be part of that agenda, just as I am to be a part of the work that we're doing in making sure that we protect the penalty rates of some 2.9 million Australians. That's something that's currently being slightly held up by the opposition, but we are determined to get that done, because we know that working Australians work hard, deserve those penalty rates and deserve to have that money in their pocket. Similarly, we continue to do the work that we committed to around making sure that Medicare is more accessible. It is a universal health system, but it's not always easy for people to get to the doctor or nurse that they need to talk to. That's why we committed to create 1800MEDICARE.”
“We made commitments in Perth, where you, Deputy Speaker Mascarenhas, and I attended Labor's launch. There was a launch in the electorate of Swan in 2022. They went one better in 2025 and launched in the electorate of Perth, where the Prime Minister stood up and made a commitment that we would make it easier for people to buy their first home—with just a five per cent deposit. We deliver on that in October this year. I don't know whether the Dockers will win the grand final on 27 September. That is for the players to determine in their excellent work. But what I do know is that, on 1 October, every first home buyer will be able to buy their own home with just a five per cent deposit.”
“Democracy doesn't just happen in parliament; it happens in the values of the people of Australia and the people of Perth. Her Excellency said: The government is ready to return to the task—of building Australia's future. That's what we were elected to do. That's the promise that we made to the Australian people when they chose to support us on 3 May. That spreads across a wide agenda, including helping Australians earn more and keep more of what they earn, strengthening Medicare, making medicines cheaper, making education and training more affordable by protecting the investments we've got by fully funding our public schools and making sure that free TAFE isn't just something that happens for a period of time but is there permanently for the future.”
“Before I begin my remarks, can I say how wonderful it is to see you, Deputy Speaker Mascarenhas, in that chair, chairing the Federation Chamber and making an incredible contribution not just to the parliament but also to the running of the parliament. You and I share an electorate border, the beautiful Swan River, and we've shared a friendship of some 20 years. It's great to see you there. I begin by thanking the Governor-General for her remarks at the opening of this 48th Parliament. Her Excellency highlighted: Our democracy is the golden thread that unites Australians across geography and generations. I could not agree more. In my electorate of Perth, I see that golden thread in action in every community group, in every person who turns up to vote and in everyone who finds their unique way to have their voice heard.”
“I'm really proud that we repay that trust by coming in here and—one of the first things we do in the first months of this 48th Parliament—delivering on that promise for cheaper medicines for every Australian.”
“We know that the measures we have taken so far have already saved Australians some $770 million. To save people money on something that is essential and to save them money on something that they often have no choice but to purchase is, I think, really smart policy. We saw that it benefited the Australian people over the last few years. We've got through the roadblocks put in our way by those in the opposition, and we want to go further with this bill. I'll conclude my remarks by thanking all of the patient and social advocacy groups who've continued to help us advocate for these changes. They do make a real difference. I want to thank the Australian people, who voted to protect Medicare on 3 May. I want to thank the Australian people, who voted for cheaper medicines.”
“That's a long time ago. It's back when Facebook was launching as 'The Facebook'; the Morley Blockbuster was doing a roaring trade, hiring out F reaky Friday amongst other movies; the minister who's here would probably have been on his Motorola flip phone, because he's a high-tech guy and would have had the latest tech; and Franz Ferdinand won the Triple J Hottest 100 with 'Take Me Out'. But it wasn't all good news back in 2004. There was, of course, the last episode of Cheez TV , which was very disappointing for some. But it was also a time when medicines cost just $25, and that's what we seek to do with this bill—to make sure that Australians can get the health care that they need at a reasonable price, giving real cost-of-living relief to millions of Australians.”
“That impact analysis tells us something about the policy benefits that come from this beyond just the cost-of-living relief. It says that this option that we are pursuing will initially reduce cost barriers for general patients to access PBS medicines. But it goes further, to say that there are other benefits over time. Those other benefits over time are: it will reduce the proportion of patients who are delaying or not filling their PBS scripts due to cost; it will reduce unavoidable hospitalisations from unmanaged conditions; it will reduce pressures on our aged care, disability and social welfare services; that it will slow the growth in chronic disease; and it will increase workforce participation because more people will be more healthy and able to attend work. It does, as many have remarked, take us back to prices in 2004.”
“The leading cause of bankruptcy in Australia, up until 1984, was people who could not pay their medical bills. Medicare ended that overnight. It made sure that people could get the health care they needed, no matter what walk of life they came from, because we believe, on this side of the House, in universal health care. In the extensive information that's given to us by the excellent Minister for Health and Ageing in putting this forward, there's a document that doesn't get enough attention in this building, which is the impact analysis statement. It was done by excellent officials, in this case, from the Department of Health, Disability and Ageing, in collaboration with some great officials from the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet, in the Office of Impact Analysis—a shout out to them!”
“We had to go to two referendums and have one constitutional amendment, but the system that we have today is thanks to those who fought that fight, and I'm proud to be here as part of the Albanese Labor government, fighting the fight not just for Medicare but for cheaper medicines. The reality is that the inability to afford the health care you need doesn't just result in worse health outcomes; it has a huge impact on people's social and economic outcomes. One of the things that we know about Medicare is that it completely changed the nature of bankruptcy in Australia for this reason. Prior to 1984, the leading cause of bankruptcy in Australia wasn't people overextending themselves, and it wasn't people having their businesses reach financial challenges.”
“It was in 1944 that John Curtin realised, in the depths of World War II, that Australia needed to be able to get medicines to the entire Australian population, not just to those who could afford them. There was a desperate need for a range of antibiotic drugs to be given to the Australian people—things like penicillin—which would take pressure off other parts of the Australian economy and other parts of the Australian health system by people getting the medical assistance they needed. Unsurprisingly, when Curtin put this forward in wartime, in 1944, before he went to sleep that night, the opposition had opposed it. There were two High Court challenges to Labor's first attempts to have a broad based pharmaceutical scheme that supported the Australian people.”
“I want to say that one of the people who have given us excellent advice on the importance of making sure that we make medicines cheaper for Australians is the member for Dobell, who's the only pharmacist in this parliament. She gives us excellent advice on making sure that we have the medicines that people need. It's an honour to sit with the member for Dobell, who is just slightly on the wrong side of the chamber these days. The PBS has been a very long policy battle. Just as we had to fight through the last parliament, against vote after vote where those opposite chose to vote against cheaper medicines, Labor has been putting this case for a very long time.”
“I was a kid with really chronic asthma and we purchased more than enough Becotide, Ventolin and other asthma medications and steroids to treat that asthma. Again, this was all supported by the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme. Again, I think of the kids and the parents who are dealing with asthma today. It will be cheaper for those things that they're going to be buying for years and years, as a result of these changes combined with our 60-day script changes, which have made a huge difference. It did take those opposite six votes against cheaper medicines to see the error of their ways. There were six votes where they said that they wanted Australians to pay more for their medicines, but, while they were voting against it in the last term, it didn't discourage the Albanese government from doing more when it comes to cheaper medicines.”
“As the Prime Minister said in this chamber just a few hours ago, it's so often remarked that you never hear of prices going down; they only ever seem to go up. Isn't it amazing that in this bill we are actually seeing not just real cost-of-living relief but also real healthcare assistance and prices going down? And it's a significant reduction, a more than 20 per cent reduction, in the cost of medicines—medicines that people are prescribed by a doctor, that they need to keep themselves healthy, that they need to stay outside of the other parts of our health system. Most of us need medications from time to time, and we are so fortunate in this country to have the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme. I know that the PBS was there for my family.”
“What they told me as I was standing in their excellent Medicare urgent care clinic there in Eaton was that they estimate there have been some 10,000 diversions from their local emergency department. That's 10,000 people who didn't have to go through the public hospital system and 10,000 people who were able to get the urgent care they needed, and for those 10,000 people the only thing they needed was their Medicare card. One of the other things we saw at the most recent election was that my great state of Western Australia sent another health professional here, to this place. I'm talking about the member for Bullwinkel, who becomes the 10th nurse to enter the Australian parliament. One of the first bills that the 10th nurse in the Australian parliament will vote for is our bill to make medicines cheaper.”
“I said, 'Vote to save the Perth urgent care clinic,' and, indeed, they did. What we've seen when it comes to cheaper medicines is that these policies are broadly supported by the Australian public, so much so that even those opposite who absolutely hate the idea of cheaper medicines eventually brought themselves to having to adopt some of Labor's policies during the 2025 election. What we've seen as well is that there's really strong support for the outcomes of these investments. I had the joy of going down to the Bunbury Medicare urgent care clinic with then Labor candidate, my good friend Tabitha Dowding, to hear about the impact of what's happening as a result of these investments.”
“On 3 May 2025, Australians voted for cheaper medicines, and they voted for a government that will always protect Medicare. One of the reasons they did that was that they'd seen what had happened over the three years prior. They had seen those opposite vote against cheaper medicines not once, not twice, not three times but six times. We saw the Australian people have their say. They supported our cheaper medicines programs and they rejected the view that those opposite put, which was the view that our medical urgent care clinics were, to quote those in the opposition, 'wasteful spending'. The Australian people had a very different view. They saw the investments that we had made in Medicare urgent care clinics as essential for the primary health of our nation. I put it very clearly to my electorate in Perth.”
“by leave—I move: That, in accordance with the provisions of the Parliamentary Contributory Superannuation Act 1948 , Mr Violi be appointed a trustee to serve on the Parliamentary Retiring Allowances Trust. Question agreed to.”
“by leave—I move: That Members be discharged and appointed as members of certain committees in accordance with the following list: Standing Committee on Petitions—Mr Wallace be discharged and that, in his place, Mr Caldwell be appointed a member of the committee; Committee of Privileges and Members' Interests—Mr Wallace be discharged and that, in his place, Mr Pike be appointed a member of the committee; Publications Committee—Mr Small be discharged and that, in his place, Mr Pike be appointed a member of the committee; Selection Committee—Ms Chaney be appointed a member of the committee; Parliamentary Joint Committee on the National Anti-Corruption Commission—Mr Pike be appointed a member of the committee; Parliamentary Joint Committee on Parliamentary Standards—Mr McCormack, Mr Pike and Mr Wilkie be appointed members of the committee; Joint Standing Committee on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Affairs—Mr Gee be appointed a member of the committee; and Joint Standing Committee on Electoral Matters—Mr Caldwell be discharged and that, in his place, Dr M Ryan be appointed a member of the committee.”
“by leave—I move: That: (1) Ms Boele be discharged from the Standing Committee on Climate Change, Energy, Environment and Water; and (2) Dr Scamps be discharged from the Standing Committee on Health, Aged Care and Disability. Question agreed to.”
“by leave—I move: That Ms Chesters be discharged from the Standing Committee on Appropriations and Administration and that, in her place, Ms Coker be appointed a member of the committee. Question agreed to.”
“It makes a real difference. It's real cost-of-living assistance. This is a government that is proud to back working Australians, proud to back pay rises for working Australians and proud to be standing here in this place today to legislate protection for their penalty rates.”
“In my final comments, I want to put this in the context of what we've been able to achieve over the last three years. We are a government that has proudly backed pay rises for those on the minimum wage. We've proudly backed those pay rises. We saw on 1 July of this year a 3.5 per cent pay rise, welcome news for some three million Australians who rely on that national minimum wage decision. But I want to put that in context of what it means over the last three years. Since Labor came to government, we've seen the national minimum wage increase by $4.62 per hour. That's $4.62 more going into the pockets of people every hour they work. Over a year, that's $9,122. That's the cumulative impact of what we've been able to achieve over our first three years in office, and that's a 22.7 per cent increase in wages for those on minimum wages.”
“We know that the Fair Work Commission is currently considering proposals from employers in the retail, clerical and banking sectors to cut penalty rates of lower-paid workers who rely on modern awards. This bill ensures that, where we have applications like these, no worker sees their pay packet reduced. It protects the integrity of the modern award system and ensures that workers are properly compensated for their work. It also seeks to protect Australia's low-paid workers from future wage cuts. It's about respecting the millions of Australians who work those public holidays, weekends, late nights and early mornings to keep Australia going. It's about making sure the safety net does what it needs to do—protect those most in need.”
“It's about fairness for people who have relied on these penalty rates for years and years and are now seeing some seek to remove that certainty that they've otherwise had. It's also about having incentive for people to do those unsocial hours. It's about making sure that we can have the labour that we need for the services Australian people rely upon in our economy. Fairness is a fundamental Australian value. We do believe that people should be paid appropriately for the work they do, and we do believe in compensating people for those unsocial hours. Sadly, we have seen a sustained effort from certain employers to roll penalty and overtime rates into a single rate of pay, leaving some employees worse off.”
“What the bill does is add new section 135A to the act to establish a very clear principle that, when exercising its powers to make, vary or revoke modern awards, the Fair Work Commission must ensure that the specified penalty or overtime rates are not reduced and that modern awards do not include terms that substitute employees' entitlements to receive penalty or overtime rates where those terms would have the effect of reducing the additional remuneration that any employee would otherwise receive. In simple terms, for those of us who don't follow industrial relations legislation as closely, it's about fairness. It's about fairness for people who work those unsocial hours.”
“If I think about my electorate of Perth, where you've got huge employment in retail and hospitality, servicing some of the busiest workers in our country in some of the most culturally important parts of our city, I think of those workers, and I think I wouldn't be able to look them in the eye if we were to be, in this place, allowing their take-home pay to be drastically cut, especially when they're working in the CBD or Northbridge, late nights, on a Saturday night or on a Sunday, servicing people while others are enjoying their leisure time. That's why it's important that this bill does pass. I'll go to the specifics of how this bill will operate.”
“They are an essential part of the modern award safety net, which supports some of the lowest paid workers in our country and some of the hardest workers in our country. Relative to all employees, we know something about those who rely on the award. What we know about those who rely on the award is that they are more likely to be women. They are more likely to work part time. They're more likely to be under the age of 35, and they're more likely to be employed on a casual basis. For many modern award reliant employees, penalty and overtime rates are not optional extras. They are a critical part of their take-home pay. They do rely on this money.”