Mal Brough (Fisher, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Health. I remind the minister of the ANAO report into the Regional Development Australia Fund, and I quote:

A feature of the Minister’s decision … was the lack of strong alignment between the funding decisions taken and the panel’s recommendations …

Minister: why is it important that projects supporting good health and sport outcomes for Australians be fair, and funded on the basis of merit?

Mr Tony Burke (Watson, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Madam Speaker, on a point of order: I am just asking whether the minister is confined to answer relevant to his own portfolio responsibilities?

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member will resume his seat. The Minister for Health has the call.

Peter Dutton (Dickson, Liberal Party, Minister for Immigration and Border Protection) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the honourable member for his question. As Australian families approach Christmas, they look back on the year and they realise that their hard work will contribute towards providing for their families, but many of them, millions of Australians who have worked hard this year, have contributed dollars to this government to make sure that we spend it wisely on projects, including in my portfolio of health and in sport, and in education—in all of the areas that we have responsibility for.

Part of the reason that the Australian people were so angry at Labor over the course of the last six years was because they wasted billions and billions of dollars—an absolute disgrace. The Labor Party got kicked out of office because, over the Rudd-Gillard-Rudd years, they wasted money in health and they wasted money in education—

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member will resume his seat.

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

No, I refer you to page 189. Resume your seat.

Peter Dutton (Dickson, Liberal Party, Minister for Immigration and Border Protection) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

They presided over the wastage of money and in this most recent report from the Audit Office—not a report from this government and not from the Prime Minister or from me—an independent report that analysed the member for Ballarat in her then ministerial position, and analysed her spending millions of dollars of taxpayers' money, decided that that money had not been spent appropriately, that decisions had not been presided over properly.

That is why the Australian public should be angry to this day towards the Labor Party, who took that money out of the pockets of hardworking Australians and wasted it. They wasted that money and they have been called out by the responsible agency for oversighting these things, the Australian National Audit Office.

There was money that was allocated into marginal Labor seats that was taken away from regional areas and put into outer metropolitan seats, like the member for McMahon's. It was deemed to be inappropriate and the Labor Party stands condemned for that.

Australia's work very hard to provide for their families, they put money into governments, and they want it spent responsibly. That is why this government was elected to clean up Labor's mess and to make sure—

Opposition members interjecting—

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The minister will resume his seat. Unless we have silence then this question time is getting very close to simply being farce. The Minister for Health has the call.

Peter Dutton (Dickson, Liberal Party, Minister for Immigration and Border Protection) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

They can object all they want. They can interject and this noise can continue. It does not change the fact that the member for Ballarat rorted money.

Mr Dreyfus interjecting—

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member will resume his seat. The member for Isaacs is relieved under 94(a). The member will leave under 94(a).

The member for Isaacs then left the chamber.

Peter Dutton (Dickson, Liberal Party, Minister for Immigration and Border Protection) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Not only does she stand condemned but she refuses to come to the dispatch box here and apologise to the Australian public. This government has a mess to clean up. Over the course of the last 12 months, yes, we have made tough decisions in the best interests of the Australian people. Yes, we have taken the right decisions for the future of this country and we will stand by those decisions.

Tony Abbott (Warringah, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I ask that further questions be placed on the Notice Paper.