House debates

Tuesday, 16 June 2009

Personal Explanations

3:50 pm

Photo of Malcolm TurnbullMalcolm Turnbull (Wentworth, Liberal Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, I wish to make a personal explanation.

Photo of Harry JenkinsHarry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | | Hansard source

Does the honourable member claim to have been misrepresented?

Photo of Malcolm TurnbullMalcolm Turnbull (Wentworth, Liberal Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | | Hansard source

Yes, grievously—

Photo of Harry JenkinsHarry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | | Hansard source

Please proceed.

Photo of Malcolm TurnbullMalcolm Turnbull (Wentworth, Liberal Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | | Hansard source

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.

3:51 pm

Photo of Peter DuttonPeter Dutton (Dickson, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Health and Ageing) Share this | | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, I wish to make a personal explanation.

Photo of Harry JenkinsHarry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | | Hansard source

Does the honourable member claim to have been misrepresented?

Photo of Peter DuttonPeter Dutton (Dickson, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Health and Ageing) Share this | | Hansard source

I do indeed.

Photo of Harry JenkinsHarry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | | Hansard source

Please proceed.

Photo of Peter DuttonPeter Dutton (Dickson, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Health and Ageing) Share this | | Hansard source

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.

Photo of Harry JenkinsHarry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | | Hansard source

Order! The member has now gone past where he was misrepresented. He will resume his seat.