Senator CARR (Victoria—Minister for Manufacturing and Minister for Defence Materiel) (14:08): I thank Senator Marshall for the question and acknowledge that these workers are part of the many thousands of Australians who have already signed on to the fight against Mr Abbott's $500 million funding cut for the automotive industry. They have the support of 79 per cent of Australians—that is according to the latest Nielsen poll—and fewer than one in five people actually support the position that the Liberal Party is pursuing on this issue. The reason for that is pretty straightforward: Australians care about the future for working people and they care about the future for the automotive industry—and that includes, of course, Victorians. The automotive industry in Victoria is central to the prosperity— Honourable senators interjecting— The PRESIDENT: Senator Carr, you might resume your seat because there is noise on both sides— Honourable senators interjecting— The PRESIDENT: I remind honourable senators that the time to debate this issue— Senator Back interjecting— Senator Cameron interjecting— The PRESIDENT: Senator Back and Senator Cameron, debate it after question time. Senator CARR: Senator Marshall, there are about 24,000 workers who are employed in firms that will be supported by this government's A New Car Plan for a Greener Future. There are workers at Ford in Geelong, workers at Toyota in Altona and workers at Holden in Port Melbourne. But there are also 117 component manufacturers in Victoria who will enjoy the support of that plan. There are of course families who depend upon the success of these policies. These families will be the first to suffer under Mr Abbott's approach. And it is not just people directly employed in the automotive industry. There are people right through the research community and people working in iron, steel, gas and plastics who are dependent on the automotive industry. These are people who depend on— (Time expired)