Parliamentary Speeches

Bills: Telecommunications Legislation Amendment (Competition and Consumer) Bill 2019, Telecommuni...

Tim Watts: I'm pleased to be able to rise in this debate on two separate but related bills, the Telecommunications Legislation Amendment (Competition and Consumer) Bill 2019 and the Telecommunications (Regional Broadband Scheme) Charge Bill 2019. Labor supports the Telecommunications Legislation Amendment (Competition and Consumer) Bill and the establishment of the statutory infrastructure provider...

Private Members' Business: Cybersafety (10 Feb 2020)

Tim Watts: I thank the member for moving this motion which has bipartisan support. I too want to recognise the important work that the eSafety Commissioner does to help minimise online harms to Australians. The eSafety Commissioner does enjoy bipartisan support. On the eve of Safer Internet Day, it is timely to acknowledge its work. But this day does give us occasion to reflect on how we are going at...

Questions to the Speaker: Parliament House: Security (6 Feb 2020)

Tim Watts: I have a question for you, Mr Speaker. I refer to recent comments made by the former Minister for Defence, Christopher Pine, in conversation with the former secretary of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, Martin Parkinson, on the 20 January 2020 episode of the Pyne Time podcast. In the conversation, Mr Pyne commented on the malicious intrusion into the Australian Parliament...

Condolences: Australian Bushfires (6 Feb 2020)

Tim Watts: I'm honoured to be able to rise in this debate to extend the condolences of my community in Melbourne's west to those who have suffered in this 'black summer'. While my electorate has not been directly affected by the fires that we've experienced in recent months, the loss of life and property experienced by so many thousands of Australians, as well as the incalculable ecological destruction...

Statements by Members: Community Sport Infrastructure Grant Program (5 Feb 2020)

Tim Watts: Downer Oval, the home of the Williamstown Football Club Seagulls, is famous for its exposure to the gale-force winds of Port Phillip Bay. When the southerly blows, it feels like it's coming straight in from Antarctica. It's an infamous part of playing at the ground. Kicking into the wind, you're lucky to be able to make the distance from the top of the goal square when that southerly is...

Matters of Public Importance: Morrison Government (5 Dec 2019)

Tim Watts: I'm delighted to speak on this motion about the lack of an economic plan from those opposite. Since the last federal election, Australia has seen a new experiment in economic policymaking in this country-not Keynesian, not Chicago School economics; what we are seeing from those opposite is 'crash-test dummy' economics. The way it works is this: you strap yourself into the car, take your...