Alan Kelly (Labour)

I agree we need a statement from the Minister for Finance as it is pertinent after the events of last week. I concur with my colleague, Senator Alex White, who summed up the situation very well. We are now in no-man's land and until the Minister clarifies where we are going, we are at a loss.

In reply to Senators Hanafin and O'Malley, the Labour Party is very happy with its position on this issue and we sleep soundly in our beds, happy with the course we have taken. Many people are very concerned about the charges to be levied on banks. Unless there is some equity involved, many people do not believe that the banks will be dealt with in a manner which the majority of us believe they should be. It is fascinating the Progressive Democrats Party is criticising the Labour Party for the actions it is taking. It sounds like the last call from a dying party, the party of deregulation that is now finally coming around to our way of thinking and advocating regulation.