David Johnston (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Defence) Share this | Hansard source

That is a question you might best ask Qantas. The situation is that Qantas, of course, for the senator's understanding, is a commercially-listed entity in Australia. It is an international carrier in the airline industry and, accordingly, is hostage to the marketplace. It is currently going through a tough time. What the government has sought to do is level the playing field for Qantas. We are not going to give them a blank cheque. We are not going to underwrite debt. We are going to give them a level playing field where they can compete on the open market, as they should. The government has announced that it will move to a single regulatory framework for all Australian airlines. Legislation will be introduced to remove the foreign ownership and operational restrictions in part 3 of the Qantas Sale Act. That, Senator, through you, Mr President, is a very important act—