Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Hansard source

I seek leave to move the following motion:

That the House:

(1) notes:

(a) Sport Australia has told the Parliament today that it provided a brief to Senator McKenzie on 3 April 2019 recommending 245 sports projects be approved;

(b) Senator McKenzie wrote to the Prime Minister on 10 April, the day before he called the election, attaching a spreadsheet with projects she intended to approve by electorate, including party details;

(c) on 11 April, the day the Prime Minister called the election, Senator McKenzie provided a brief to Sport Australia dated 4 April approving 228 projects for funding;

(d) 73 per cent of projects approved by Senator McKenzie were not recommended by Sport Australia;

(e) Sport Australia received the approved sports rorts list from Senator McKenzie after the election had been called and after caretaker conventions had commenced;

(f) the Government approved a $50,000 grant to the Sans Souci Football Club in the Prime Minister's own electorate despite the fact the project had already been built, had already been officially opened and was therefore ineligible for funding; and

(g) the Prime Minister is the master chef of cooking the books;

(2) declares the Prime Minister has repeatedly misled the Parliament and he should have the integrity to correct the record as required by House practice; and

(3) calls on the Prime Minister to provide a full and frank account as to why he has used taxpayer money to advance his own Government's partisan political interests.

Leave not granted.

I move:

That so much of the standing orders be suspended as would prevent the Leader of the Opposition from moving the following motion immediately—That the House:

(1) notes:

(a) Sport Australia has told the Parliament today that it provided a brief to Senator McKenzie on 3 April 2019 recommending 245 sports projects be approved;

(b) Senator McKenzie wrote to the Prime Minister on 10 April, the day before he called the election, attaching a spreadsheet with projects she intended to approve by electorate, including party details;

(c) on 11 April, the day the Prime Minister called the election, Senator McKenzie provided a brief to Sport Australia dated 4 April approving 228 projects for funding;

(d) 73 per cent of projects approved by Senator McKenzie were not recommended by Sport Australia;

(e) Sport Australia received the approved sports rorts list from Senator McKenzie after the election had been called and after caretaker conventions had commenced;

(f) the Government approved a $50,000 grant to the Sans Souci Football Club in the Prime Minister's own electorate despite the fact the project had already been built, had already been officially opened and was therefore ineligible for funding; and

(g) the Prime Minister is the master chef of cooking the books;

(2) declares the Prime Minister has repeatedly misled the Parliament and he should have the integrity to correct the record as required by House practice; and

(3) calls on the Prime Minister to provide a full and frank account as to why he has used taxpayer money to advance his own Government's partisan political interests.

The fact is that this government is showing they can't even prepare to defend—

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