Kim Beazley (Brand, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Deputy Prime Minister. Does the Deputy Prime Minister agree with the statement of US congressman Henry Hyde: ‘Saddam paid $US25,000 rewards to the families of Palestinian suicide bombers, through the Iraqi Ambassador to Jordan, out of the accounts in the Rafidain Bank in Amman which held kickback money Saddam demanded from suppliers to his regime’?

Cameron Thompson (Blair, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Cameron Thompson interjecting

David Hawker (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Blair!

Kim Beazley (Brand, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Is the Deputy Prime Minister also aware of comments by Ratib al-Amleh of the Arab Liberation Front, and the organiser of that scheme, who said he could not deny—

David Hawker (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The Leader of the Opposition will resume his seat. The member for Blair is warned!

Kim Beazley (Brand, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

He could not deny that the source of that funding given to these families by Saddam Hussein may have been Australia. What investigations has the government undertaken to ensure that none of AWB’s payments into the Rafidain Bank were used to pay the families of Palestinian suicide bombers or were used in any other way to support military efforts in the region? What investigations have you done?

Mark Vaile (Lyne, National Party, Minister for Trade) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

In answer to the Leader of the Opposition’s question, I am not aware of some of those comments that he referred to. There is no evidence that any Australian money has gone in that direction and, if the Labor Party had their way, Saddam Hussein would still be in power.