Barry Haase (Durack, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. I refer the Prime Minister to her comments in the House that the government’s intention to accommodate 1,200 detainees at the Curtin detention centre was funded in the budget. Will the Prime Minister refer the House to the page in the budget papers or any media statement by the Prime Minister or minister that makes reference to a capacity of 1,200 places at Curtin detention centre funded by an appropriation in the budget?

Julia Gillard (Lalor, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

We are having a very strange day in question time indeed. I regret to inform the member that I do not have committed to memory every page of the budget and every line item in the budget. In the time that I have been in this parliament, possibly the former member for Bradfield might have been able to achieve that feat, but I am not aware of anybody else with that capacity. Obviously, when budget appropriations were done they were done appropriately. As I have said in this parliament before, the Department of Immigration and Citizenship works through—

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Mackellar, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Seniors) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, I rise on a point of order on relevance. The direct question was: ‘Where is the reference in the budget to that material?’ Perhaps the Prime Minister could be honest and take it on notice and come back to the House.

Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Mackellar will resume her seat. The Prime Minister has the call.

Julia Gillard (Lalor, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I repeat for the member for Mackellar that I do not have committed to memory every page of the budget and every word on every page of the budget. Obviously, the budget deals with appropriations for the department of immigration, and those appropriations are used for detention purposes, including being used for the announcements that have been made most recently. In the announcement made on Monday, there was a net additional spend of $54 million.

Barry Haase (Durack, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I seek leave to table page 326 of the budget measures 2010-11. It is an appropriation for capital works—

Leave not granted.