Appropriation Bill (No. 1) 2026-2027

Mr REBELLO (McPherson) (12:16): This is one of the rare opportunities for the opposition to put questions to the relevant minister in relation to the appropriations for the employment and workplace relations portfolio. I am going to start my contribution with a number of questions. In relation to this government's same-day super program, noting that small businesses are at the heart of our economy and often operate with similar payroll systems, in the case of a late or mistaken superannuation payment, I would like to know what modelling has been undertaken to indicate the economic impact of penalties imposed on businesses, particularly those which are currently cash poor.

There has been a lot of conversation about the CFMEU and its administration, so I have a question for the relevant minister. If the CFMEU were significantly reformed or deregistered, how much would Australian taxpayers save in debloated construction costs, especially within the context of a housing crisis? And in a similar vein, the most recent federal budget indicates that the CFMEU administrator, chief of staff and deputy chief of staff earn more combined in a year than is allocated to help small businesses navigate the Fair Work system.

Is this an indication of the Albanese Labor government's priorities? We've heard a lot from those on the other side in this chamber, in the context of this debate, and there are two points that I would like to discuss in particular. One is this notion that government members purport about not leaving anybody behind.

During the time that I was back in my electorate, between sitting weeks, I can honestly say that is not what people feel on the ground right now. If those members opposite looked very closely at their constituents and engaged with their small businesses I am sure that they would find the same, because people do feel very isolated and alone at the moment—and small-business owners more so than others.

In fact, just this morning I had the opportunity to speak to two small-business owners in my electorate who are really frustrated about the changes that were occurring under this government, and especially the changes under the recent budget, because they know the sacrifices they've had to go through. They know the risks that they've had to assume, they know the jobs that they've created and they know what their contributions to the Australian economy are, and yet they feel penalised.

And not just once or twice, but layers and layers of penalty that is imposed on them by this government's policies. There are many people in this country who are being left behind at the moment, and small-business owners are at the front of that line. I'd also like to point out that, prior to my speech, the member opposite, the member for Chisholm, was raving about unemployment figures under this government.

And whilst we'd always welcome people to be in jobs, let's actually call it out for what it is. We are seeing that four out of five jobs are being created in the public sector, not in the private sector. When we're talking about those new jobs and we're talking about unemployment rates we need to be upfront and honest with the Australian people.

These are not jobs that are being created as a result of the government supporting a private sector that is thriving, enriched and engaged. These are jobs that are being created by government for government at the expense of the Australian taxpayer and at the expense of Australians who are doing the right thing and are running businesses, taking risks and doing all that sort of stuff.

So let's call that out for what it is. We had the minimum wage increase decision yesterday. While I respect the decision and while the coalition respects the decision it's very rich to say, 'Everything's great for small businesses, and everything's great for people who are on the minimum wage,' because what's happening is under this government's mismanagement of our economy and under their ridiculously reckless spending we're seeing all of these increases being eaten away time and time again by inflation, and that is home-grown inflation.

If you compare Australia to the rest of the world—I know those opposite like to talk about what's happening in the Middle East, but this was happening well and truly before then. We've had 15 interest rate rises, 14 of which occurred prior to the Middle East conflict, so these minimum wage increases are going to mean a drop in the ocean for Australians who are doing it tough.

We've got a government who has lost control of the economy and who does not know how to manage the economy and generate wealth. If you generate wealth in this country by running a small business, what does the government do? They come after you.