Malcolm Turnbull Wentworth, Liberal Party, Leader of the Opposition
3:50 pm
Mr Speaker, I wish to make a personal explanation.
Harry Jenkins Speaker
Does the honourable member claim to have been misrepresented?
Malcolm Turnbull Wentworth, Liberal Party, Leader of the Opposition
Yes, grievously—
Malcolm Turnbull Wentworth, Liberal Party, Leader of the Opposition
by the Treasurer. In the course of question time he said repeatedly that we had opposed the wholesale funding guarantee. He said that we had opposed it ‘tooth and nail’. He said that several times. The fact is that the Guarantee Scheme for Large Deposits and Wholesale Funding Appropriation Bill 2008 was brought into the House on 25 November by the government following a call for it from the opposition on 17 November in which I pledged bipartisan support. It was expressly supported by all the opposition speakers and carried without dissent on 25 November 2008, as noted on page 11,335 of the House of Representatives Hansard. The Treasurer should apologise to the House for misleading it.
Peter Dutton Dickson, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Health and Ageing
3:51 pm
Mr Speaker, I wish to make a personal explanation.
Harry Jenkins Speaker
Does the honourable member claim to have been misrepresented?
Peter Dutton Dickson, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Health and Ageing
I do indeed.
Peter Dutton Dickson, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Health and Ageing
During question time today, as the Minister for Foreign Affairs approached the dispatch box, I said to him that if he used the words ‘fair shake of the sauce bottle’ then this clearly was a contribution by the Prime Minister; that is, that his words were clearly provided to him by the Prime Minister—or words to that effect. And that has been somehow manipulated by the foreign affairs minister into some sort of a statement that we do not support the government in a bipartisan position in relation to concern about developments in Iran at the moment. It is a complete misrepresentation of what I said. It is clear that the Prime Minister writes every word for this foreign affairs minister and that is the point I was trying to make.
Harry Jenkins Speaker
Order! The member has now gone past where he was misrepresented. He will resume his seat.