WONG:The Prime Minister announces a change of his team but no change to his policies. No reshuffle can fix this Government's unfair Budget. No reshuffle can change this Prime Ministers agenda to push up the cost of living for families and to make life harder for ordinary Australians. No amount of reshuffle can change those facts.
The Prime Minister started by saying that this reshuffle was about jobs and families. Lets remember that this is a Prime Minister under whom weve seen the highest unemployment rate in over a decade, this is a Prime Minister who wants to charge you for going to a doctor, this is the Prime Minister who wants to take money off pensioners and this is a Prime Minister who wants $100,000 degrees.
None of that has changed with this reshuffle and no reshuffle can fix this Governments unfair agenda and unfair Budget.
Ill make a couple of points about some of the changes the hard working men and women in the Australian Defence Force will certainly not be happy with a Minister who is known for cutting pensioners entitlements and bringing WorkChoices to Australia. They are already battling an unfair pay deal from the Government an effective pay cut. Now, they have Kevin Andrews, the bloke who brought WorkChoices to working people here in this country.
And of course, Scott Morrison, to Social Security. Mr Morrisons stay in Immigration has been short, nasty and secretive and now they have put him in charge of policy for pensioners and for people with disability. I dont think people would be very happy before Christmas for that.
Id also make the point, obviously I am Acting Leader but I am also Senate Leader and what weve seen is three frontbenchers gone from the Senate at a time when the Senate has never been more important. Its not much of a vote of confidence in Mr Abbotts Senate team.
Happy to take questions.
JOURNALIST: Is this any way removing the barnacles or does it make Labors job harder?
WONG: He might have changed his salespeople but he hasnt changed his unfair policies. The barnacles as you call them and as he calls them are the broken promises to Australians.
No reshuffle can change the fact that Tony Abbott has spent this last year breaking every single promise hes made to Australians before the election.
JOURNALIST: [Inaudible]
WONG: David Johnston not only spoke disrespectfully of the people we trust to make sure our submariners are kept safe, he also presided over chaos when it comes to the submarine contract and he walked away from a promise that he and the Prime Minister made before the election. The Liberal Party made it very clear before the last election that they would build submarines here in South Australia, here in Australia.
Lets see if the new Defence Minister can do the one thing David Johnston wouldnt - and that is to keep a promise to build submarines in Australia.
JOURNALIST: Do you see these changes making any difference to the Government?
WONG: As I said, no reshuffle can change the fact that this Prime Minister has spent a year breaking his promises to the Australian people and no reshuffle can fix this Governments Budget. You might change the tires on the bus but the wheels are still spinning.
JOURNALIST: Are you surprised by the scale of the reshuffle?
WONG: I think it is a vote of no confidence in the Prime Ministers Cabinet. You dont need to have this extensive a reshuffle if your Cabinet is performing well. The reality we know is the Cabinet isnt performing well and the Government is not performing well because their policies are bad.
JOURNALIST: [Inaudible] doubled the number of women in Cabinet?
WONG: I think anybody looking at the Abbott Cabinet would say this, and the Liberal Party; the women are still knocking on the door rather than in the room.
Thank you.
ENDS