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. I refer the Prime Minister to this memo from Mr Doug Williams, the Industrial Registrar of the Australian Industrial Relations Commission, in June 2009 recommending that criminal activity involving the Health Services Union and the member for Dobell be referred to the police, the recommendation that was ignored by his successor, Tim Lee. As the Prime Minister was the Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations at that time, can she rule out that she had any knowledge of this recommendation? (Time expired)

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

It has not taken long, has it, for the opposition to be back to this? Despite the protestations of sympathy of the Leader of the Opposition, every word dripping with insincerity, the truth was revealed on the weekend in the newspapers when the henchman of the Leader of the Opposition was out saying they will continue their campaign against the member for Dobell until they break him. Those are the standards of the Leader of the Opposition, those are the standards over there.

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

Madam Deputy Speaker, I rise on a point of order: the question was not asked about the member for Dobell. It was asked about the Prime Minister—about her—and that is the question she needs to answer.

Ms Anna Burke (Chisholm, Deputy-Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Manager of Opposition Business will resume his seat. The Prime Minister will answer the question.

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

Thank you very much, Madam Deputy Speaker. I am just pointing to the destructive negativity of this Leader of the Opposition. In answer to the member for Sturt's question: no, I was not aware of the memo.

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

Madam Deputy Speaker, my supplementary question is to the Prime Minister. Given her answer that she was unaware of that recommendation, will the Prime Minister launch an immediate investigation of Fair Work Australia to determine why this recommendation was not acted upon and why, in fact, Fair Work Australia refused to cooperate with the police until three years later?

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

To the member for Sturt, I remind him that Fair Work Australia is an independent body. I remind him that Fair Work Australia has already announced that it is having a review of this matter by KPMG and the government has already announced that, should actions be required by the government arising from the review, then we will take them. That is already done. So for all the member for Sturt's puffed-up hysteria as part of the destructive negativity of the opposition on these matters and all matters, that is the situation. To the member for Sturt—who will always be there, making private overtures to the government saying he is worried about these things but in here muckraking—I say the following: I believe every case for the prosecution has been already put before this parliament. The case for the defence has been made. This parliament should move on. The opposition should move on and deal with questions of importance to the nation, not this continued destructive negativity.