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 and Minister for Trade. I refer to his statement yesterday that there is ‘no evidence’ that any Australian money went to the families of Palestinian suicide bombers or was used in any other way to support military efforts in the region. How can the Deputy Prime Minister assert that there is no evidence when AWB’s payments to Alia were paid into an account held at the same bank used by the Iraqi regime to pay the families of Palestinian suicide bombers?

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

As we have continued to say in this place on this matter, there is a commission of inquiry that is conducting an investigation into this. It is part heard and it is going to the facts of all the matters that are raised. That is what is taking place and it should be allowed to run its course to find those conclusions.