Senator WATT (Queensland—Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry and Minister for Emergency Management) (14:00): I knew if I waited long enough the shadow minister for industrial relations would be allowed to ask a question about industrial relations. Opposition senators interjecting— The PRESIDENT: Senator Watt, please resume your seat. Order on my left! Senator Watt, please continue. Senator WATT: It is always good to have a question about industrial relations from the former minister whose office led a police raid on union offices and who presided over conflict in the industrial relations system and wants to drag us back into that conflict situation. It's always good to get a question about IR from the whiteboard warrior over there, Senator Cash. Opposition senators interjecting— The PRESIDENT: Senator Watt, resume your seat. Order on my left! Senator Watt, I will direct you to Senator Cash's question. Senator WATT: Senator Cash, it is always good to hear from you. The one thing I can guarantee is that, when Senator Cash opens her mouth about industrial relations, it's going to be a scarce campaign based on lies—and she is doing it yet again. The actual facts here— Senator Cash: I have a point of order on relevance, President. You have already directed the minister to my question. I ask that you again draw his attention to the question. The PRESIDENT: I will, indeed, direct the minister to your question. Senator WATT: In fact, I was directly answering Senator Cash's question by referring to the fact that yet again she was coming out with a scare campaign based on lies. That was the question. Opposition senators int erjecting— The PRESIDENT: Senator Watt, please resume your seat. If I direct the minister back to the question, I expect those that asked the question to at least be quiet so we can all hear the answer. Senator Birmingham? Senator Birmingham: President, indeed, you gave two directions, which I welcomed, to the minister back to the question. Each time, he has flouted that by continuing with the theme of simply reflecting upon the opposition rather than dealing with the very specific, relevant detail of the question. The PRESIDENT: Senator Birmingham, I had just directed the minister back to the question and there was so much noise on my left I couldn't even tell you what the minister said. He is well aware that I've directed him twice. If we can have quiet, we might all be able to hear the answer. Senator WATT: As opposed to what Senator Cash is saying, the facts here are that small businesses will be excluded from the single-interest stream and so will not be forced to bargain— The PRESIDENT: Senator Watt, please resume your seat. Senator WATT: I'm trying to explain— The PRESIDENT: Senator Cash? Senator Cash: The point of order is again on relevance. I asked about the bargaining cost for medium businesses. You clearly don't even know that a small, medium or large business— The PRESIDENT: Senator Cash, that is a debating point. It's not point of order. Senator WATT: Small businesses will have access to the cooperative workplaces stream. This point comes across from— Opposition senators interjecting— The PRESIDENT: When you have quite finished on my left, you have one of your own senators on her feet! Senator McKenzie? Senator McKenzie: On relevance, it may be that the shadow minister could table the regulatory impact statement— The PRESIDENT: Senator McKenzie, that is not a debating point. Please resume your seat. Senator WATT: Small businesses will have access to the cooperative workplaces stream, which is designed to be a low-cost option for businesses without a dedicated human resources capacity. We've seen over the last 24 hours Senator Cash hyperventilating about information within this RIS. The PRESIDENT: Senator Watt, I'm going to ask you to withdraw that. Senator WATT: I will withdraw 'hyperventilating'. The PRESIDENT: Thank you. Senator WATT: We have seen Senator Cash going on and on and on as she is prone to do about information contained in the RIS and trying to argue that this shows that small businesses will be subject to a major cost when in actual fact most of them will have access to the cooperative workplaces stream, which is a low-cost option that most of them will take advantage of. It's more misrepresentation and scare-campaigning from the opposition. (Time expired)