Senator SMITH (Western Australia) (15:16): Of course, I add my remarks in support of what Senator Faulkner said at the very end of his speech. And I am sure that other senators will join me in acknowledging the great work that the Clerk and the Clerk's office do for this Senate and for this parliament as a whole. Senator Cameron started his contribution by talking a little bit about 'catatonic'. For those who missed the word, 'catatonic' was first described in 1874, if I remember correctly. He used the word 'catatonic', which is a state of neurogenic motor immobility and behavioural abnormality manifested by stupor to describe the actions of some people in this place. I prefer to use the psychological expression 'state of denial'. 'State of denial' was first used by Sigmund Freud and it describes someone or something—or some people, I am sure—who refuses to accept the truth. It is a phrase used to describe a person who is faced with a fact that is too uncomfortable to accept and rejects it, instead insisting that it is not true despite what may be overwhelming evidence. So let us just cast our minds back to post September last year— Senator Bilyk: Are you describing your budget? Senator SMITH: You will enjoy this Senator Bilyk; please let me finish in the time I have available to me. What did Labor members say following the September 2013 election? What did the Labor member for Wakefield, Mr Nick Champion, say? He said in an interview on ABC radio's AM program on 11 September 2013 with regard to the carbon tax: I don't see why the Labor Party should necessarily stay wedded to this concept when everybody else has walked away from it in one form or another. That is what the Labor member for Wakefield said immediately following the federal election. Senator Bilyk: Why are you wedded to your budget? Everybody else isn't! Senator SMITH: Senator Bilyk, I can accept that one comment from one Labor member may not be enough. So let me give you another. Let me give you the comments of Mr Richard Marles, the member for Corio, on 12 September. He was reported in the West Australian newspaper—very reliable journal that it is. He said that Labor needed to choose its battles carefully, and: We do need to acknowledge the fact that Tony Abbott won the election and we lost, … Of course, some Labor senators might prefer to hear from former Labor members—indeed, former Labor premiers. So I might share with you what Bob Carr had to say some years ago about the electorally-sensitive matter of political mandates. What did Bob Carr have to say? He was talking on Channel 9 in 1998 about the Howard government—their re-election and the importance of their mandate. Senator Bilyk: Why not go back to the 1800s again? Senator SMITH: Would you like to listen to what former Labor senator and Labor premier, Bob Carr, had to say? Mr Carr said: My view is that a government with a majority in any lower house ought to be able to implement its program not subject to frustration by an upper house, … That is what Labor senator, Bob Carr, had to say. What we have seen since September 2013 is a perpetual state of denial by most Labor members and, indeed, all Labor senators. And I think it is just worth reflecting on what was happening one year ago today. I would just like to talk about an article in the Sunday Telegraph. It was headlined 'Carbon tax to go as Rudd eyes poll'. This was Sunday, 14 July 2013—12 months ago. The article goes on to say: KEVIN Rudd will announce plans to scrap the carbon tax within days as he clears the decks for an election. Kevin Rudd, planning to abandon the carbon tax. What we had yesterday was not criticism of Independent and minor party senators; it was a criticism of the Labor Party and its decision to stand in the way of repealing the carbon tax. Let's be clear: the coalition is critical of Labor senators who in one breath say that they will repeal the carbon tax and in another breath say that they will keep the carbon tax. Labor in the Senate is operating in a state of denial and it is now time to reflect the proper mandate of this government, demonstrated by its overwhelming election at the polls in September 2013. The time is right to repeal the carbon tax; to free Australian businesses and to allow jobs to be created. (Time expired)