Ms Julie Bishop (Curtin, Liberal Party, Deputy Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister and I refer to her previous answers. How can Australians trust this Prime Minister to conduct the affairs of state in a democratic manner when the Prime Minister has confirmed that this government is prepared to defy the will of both houses of this parliament?

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

I say to the Deputy Leader of the Opposition that she may want to refer to some of the books that describe our system of government. That will give her the answer to her question. Executive government takes policy decisions and we have. In respect of parliamentary consideration of matters involving asylum seeker and refugee policy, I think it is very important that, in answering the Deputy Leader of the Opposition's question, we are very clear about the parliamentary processes to date. The opposition brought to the parliament a motion to endorse its Nauru solution. It was not carried by the parliament, and indeed the opposition needed to pair out the members for Pearce and McMillan because it was unable to get two of its own members to walk into the parliament and support its motion. So its motion failed and it was not supported by two members of the opposition. The members for Pearce and Macmillan did not want to support it and so they were the subject of pairs. The Nauru solution, or so-called solution, as put by the opposition—

Christopher Pyne (Sturt, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Education, Apprenticeships and Training) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, on a point of order which goes to relevance: this was a very serious question; it did not contain any argument, debate or hyperbole. I ask you to ask the Prime Minister to answer the direct question about her defiance of the motion about Malaysia that was passed today, which had no bearing on—

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

The Prime Minister is aware of the obligation to be directly relevant to the standing order. The Prime Minister has the call.

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

I could not have been asked a broader question about democratic processes and I am answering that question. I am describing what happened with the Nauru motion because I am seriously going to ask the Leader of the Opposition: is he putting to this parliament and to the Australian people that if he were Prime Minister and his Nauru motion failed to get the support of this House, as it has, he would not proceed with his so-called Nauru solution? If that is the position of the Leader of the Opposition then I presume today he is saying to the Australian people that he has no policy and no plan on how to deal with people smuggling, because this House of parliament has rejected a motion containing his so-called Nauru solution. So now, arising out of today's questions in question time, we can clarify for the Australian people that the Leader of the Opposition proposes to do absolutely nothing about people smuggling.

Opposition members interjecting—

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

Order! The Prime Minister will relate her material to the question.

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

I am determined, on the other hand, to send the strongest possible message to people smugglers and to asylum seekers not to get on boats. And we will continue to pursue that policy and that agreement with Malaysia, as I take it now that we are the only political party in this parliament with a positive plan to take further action against people smuggling.