I would like to thank the Prime Minister for her confidence in appointing me to the position of Assistant Treasurer and Minister Assisting for Deregulation.
I am immensely proud to be appointed a Minister in the Gillard Government. Only Labor Governments are prepared to tackle the hard, long-term reforms that create opportunities for working Australians and build a platform to lift the standard of living of all Australians. I am greatly honoured to be in a position to help shape the economic debate and to be a part of a Government that continues this great Labor tradition.
I look forward to working with the Prime Minister, Treasurer, Minister for Finance and Deregulation and my Ministerial and Parliamentary colleagues to ensure that we continue to have a strong economy that delivers for working Australians.
Over the past 17 months as Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasurer, I have worked hard on a number of significant reforms in the areas of corporate law, consumer and competition policy and financial literacy, including:
- Reforming Australia's executive remuneration laws to deliver more transparency and accountability and give shareholders more power to have a say
- Implementing the Australian Consumer Law, the first ever law that gives consumers the same rights and protections regardless of which State or Territory they live in Australia
- Progressing the harmonisation and modernisation of insolvency laws, which will deliver better industry standards and better returns to creditors
- Strengthening our competition laws to protect businesses against unconscionable conduct and crack down on creeping acquisitions
- Launching the Government's National Financial Literacy Strategy and MoneySmart consumer finance website
As a member of the Gillard Government's Ministerial team, I look forward to this opportunity to serve my community and the Australian people to deliver on Labor's vision for the future of our nation.
2 March 2012