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

My question is to the Prime Minister. Last month the Prime Minister said that News Limited in Australia had some hard questions to answer despite the absence of any allegations of criminal activity against them in Australia. Should the Prime Minister not apply the same standards to the member for Dobell and stop protecting him from answering the hard questions in relation to the serious allegations levelled against him?

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

One of these days the shadow minister will ask a question about Australian schools, but it clearly will not be today.

Mr Pyne interjecting—

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

The member for Sturt! The Prime Minister has the call.

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

I do find this kind of stupidity from the opposition amusing; that is right. In answer to the shadow minister's question—as they bellow and scream the way they normally do—I did make that statement about News Limited. I did it at a time when Australians were watching issues in the United Kingdom and they were a cause of community concern. There was, for a period a couple of years ago, a UK scandal involving parliamentary entitlements. People would recall that. When people saw that on their TV screens in the UK it did cause a national conversation about parliamentarian entitlements, even though there was no evidence of anything happening of the same nature here and, indeed, the rules were very different here. I made a very simple point about the nature of our national conversation following what people were watching on their TV screens through the News of the World scandal.

What I believe is entirely different here, and what the shadow minister is clearly not understanding, is it is one thing for us as a nation to have public policy debates; it is another thing to prejudge a matter in relation to an individual. I am concerned about Senator Brandis's conduct in relation to the matter the Attorney-General has just described, but Senator Brandis did say one very perceptive thing on 19 August. He said:

Senator Fisher is being prosecuted. She maintains her innocence. She is entitled to a fair trial just as the member for Dobell is entitled to a fair trial.

That is where the matter would and should rest if the opposition were not fuelled by hypocrisy and their own narrow political interest. As the shadow Treasurer has made abundantly clear today the only thing that motivates them, the only thing they care about, the only issues they will ever pursue in this parliament are ones—

Joe Hockey (North Sydney, Liberal Party, Shadow Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Your integrity or lack thereof.

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

The member for North Sydney is warned.

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

which they think will enable them to change jobs. They have got no concern about the Australian public, no concern about jobs, no plans in health, no plans in education and no knowledge of how to run the Australian economy. All they have left in the back of the cupboard is Work Choices and a $70 billion black hole and they pursue their hypocrisy and self-interest day after day—it is truly disgusting.