House debates
Thursday, 27 May 2010
Personal Explanations
4:08 pm
Tony Abbott (Warringah, Liberal Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
Mr Speaker, I wish to make a personal explanation.
Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
Does the honourable member claim to have been misrepresented?
Tony Abbott (Warringah, Liberal Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
I do—repeatedly by the Prime Minister.
Tony Abbott (Warringah, Liberal Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
The Prime Minister said in question time today on a number of occasions that I wanted to see higher taxes on businesses with a turnover in excess of $5 million a year. This is wrong. In fact, it is a lie—
Tony Abbott (Warringah, Liberal Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
and it should not be said in this House.
Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
The member will withdraw that aspect.
Tony Abbott (Warringah, Liberal Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
It is certainly a misrepresentation. I withdraw the word ‘lie’. There was a further misrepresentation. The Minister for Small Business, Independent Contractors and the Service Economy today claimed that I was uninterested in small business on the basis of the fact that there were only four references to small business in my book. He has written three books on tax; there are no references whatsoever to small business in any of his three books.
Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
The Leader of the Opposition will resume his seat.
4:10 pm
Bob Baldwin (Paterson, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Defence Science and Personnel) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
Mr Speaker, I wish to make a personal explanation.
Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
Does the honourable member claim to have been misrepresented?
Bob Baldwin (Paterson, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Defence Science and Personnel) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
I do.
Bob Baldwin (Paterson, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Defence Science and Personnel) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
During question time today, the Prime Minister stated that I had misquoted an article from the Newcastle Herald. In fact, he then read out a headline from an article that he thought I had read from. That is not correct. The article that I have here is from the Newcastle Herald. It is dated 3 May, it is by Ian Kirkwood and the headline is, as I said, ‘40% tax on coal profits has Hunter coal companies up in arms over “blatant tax grab”‘. I seek leave to table that document to correct the record.
Leave not granted.