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

Deputy Speaker, can I congratulate you on the role. It is good to have you there in the chair.

Mr Fletcher interjecting—

I have to say, if I were a minister I would not care to be just hanging around, shouting at the opposition the whole time. Most ministers are in charge of something, but I guess the Minister for Urban Infrastructure at the table is in the same position as every other member of the government: what you actually think has nothing to do with what you end up doing. You may as well come in, shout a few barbs across the table and entertain yourself because you do not get a chance to do anything you believe in. At least he is in a better position than the poor old bloke beside him at the table, who was responsible for the census. Sometimes—

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