Kevin Rudd Griffith, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition
4:19 pm
My question is to the Prime Minister. I refer to the Prime Minister’s answer to the previous question from the member for Barton, where the Prime Minister stated for the first time that the government has in place a contingency plan for the phased withdrawal of Australian forces from Iraq.
Unidentified interjection - Hansard doesn't record who said this
Government Members:
Government members interjecting—
Kevin Rudd Griffith, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition
Referring to the previous question by the member for Barton—which asked, ‘Does the Prime Minister have a similar contingency plan of phased withdrawal in place for Australian forces?’—the Prime Minister’s response was yes, he did. My question to the Prime Minister is: what is that plan?
John Howard Bennelong, Liberal Party, Prime Minister
I was asked, if my memory serves me correctly, whether I was aware of an American plan and I said yes and that it is normal to have a contingency plan. The Leader of the Opposition is misrepresenting what I said.