Labor grills Turnbull over weakening of race hate laws on Harmony Day – as it happened

Labor’s Tony Burke is speaking on a matter of public importance on the changes to 18C.

Do they want to lower the bar on racial hate speech in Australia?

Will be interesting to see who does the speech defending the changes for the Coalition.

There appears to be no one in the chair at this stage.

Shorten to Turnbull: Wages growth is at record lows. Underemployment is at record highs. The unemployment rate has increased to nearly 6%. Is the prime minister still committed to his entire $50bn tax cut for big business, a plan that the prime minister has previously modestly described as his greatest achievement? And if not, what’s left of the prime minister’s 1-point plan for jobs and growth?

Malcolm Turnbull says the suggestion from Shorten and Plibersek was utterly false.

He reads a transcript of the interview concerned, when he was asked “what would you say is your greatest achievement since being prime minister?” Turnbull says he responded, “Jobs and growth, 3.3% economic growth”.

Completely and utterly false. The answer is there. Once again, no regard for the truth. Talk about post-truth politics. The parallel universe in which they inhabit.

Bowen to Morrison: Days after last year’s budget, the treasurer said, “At the centre of our plan for jobs and growth is a 10-year enterprise tax plan.” Is the treasurer still committed to his entire 10-year plan, a plan the prime minister described as his greatest achievement? If not, isn’t the government’s so-called plan for jobs and growth just in tatters?

Morrison says he is absolutely committed to his tax plan.

Then he attacks Labor’s change of support for company tax cuts (as Keating once supported).

Plibersek to Turnbull: On 9 September last year, when asked to name his greatest achievements since deposing the former prime minister, the member for Warringah, the current prime minister said, “Reforms to business tax.” Is the prime minister still committed to his centre piece $50bn tax cut for big business in full? If not, what will the prime minister’s new greatest achievement be?

The PM does not exactly answer but he sings the praises of the policy.

Government question on secret payments between unions and employers to Christopher Pyne.

Chris Bowen to Scott Morrison: There are reports today that the government is preparing to back down on its centrepiece $50bn tax cut for big business. Just like the treasurer backed down on an increase to the GST, state income taxes and dealing with the excesses in negative gearing. Can the treasurer name one major tax reform he has been able to hold on to for more than a year?

Morrison says:

• Multinational anti-avoidance legislation,
  
• diverted profits tax legislation,
  
• low-value goods legislation to make sure that people are paying taxes on the goods that they buy from overseas,
  
• superannuation “that those opposite didn’t have the gall to bring into this chamber”.
  

Labor’s Brendan O’Connor to Turnbull: The Reserve Bank ofAustralia has today said, “Growth in labour incomes had been unusually weak and if it were to persist it would have implications for consumption growth and the risks posed to household debt.” Why is the government threatening demand and the economy by supporting pay cuts for Australians?

Turnbull says O’Connor supported the Fair Work Commission as did Bill Shorten.

But not now. What did they justify those changes for? The increase in employment. More jobs. More businesses opening. Page after page of examples of small businesses that said that the high rate of Sunday penalty rates and public holiday rates at the moment prevented them from opening. There are pages and pages of them, Mr Speaker. It was a decision based on evidence. The Fair Work Commission is backing small business and so are we.