Tony Abbott (Warringah, Liberal Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Speaker, my question is to the Prime Minister. I refer the Prime Minister to the member for Holt's speech yesterday, saying that the capacity of our security agencies has been impaired by budget cuts. I quote him:

… that is now happening—and that is completely unacceptable.

Does the Prime Minister deny her own committee chairman's careful and considered judgement?

Mark Dreyfus (Isaacs, Australian Labor Party, Attorney-General) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

He said 'I believe'.

Ms Anna Burke (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Attorney-General—

Mr Dreyfus interjecting—

The Attorney-General is now warned! The Prime Minister has the call.

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

To the Leader of the Opposition: the facts are the facts. I have taken the Leader of the Opposition to the facts for ASIO—that is, a 27 per cent funding increase since 2007-08; a 32 per cent increase in staffing. I take the Leader of the Opposition to some more facts.

Tony Abbott (Warringah, Liberal Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Speaker, I rise on a point of order: I specifically referred the Prime Minister, in my question, to the statement in this House by the member for Holt yesterday, and she should direct her answers specifically to the member for Holt's—

Ms Anna Burke (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Leader of the Opposition will resume his seat. The Prime Minister has the call.

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

Thank you very much. When we are talking about budget figures, then I think it pays to look at the budget and the clear facts that are revealed there. I have outlined those facts to the House.

Can I take the Leader of the Opposition to these facts in another way? The Leader of the Opposition, I know, is familiar with the Australian government general government sector average staffing levels. I know he is familiar with that because he has gone to these numbers in the past. For example, in March this year in a media interview he referred to these numbers specifically and said, 'We don't need the extra 20,000 Commonwealth—

Ms Anna Burke (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Prime Minister will return to the question before the chair.

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

Thank you very much. I am asked about intelligence staffing, and I am coming—

Opposition members interjecting—

Ms Anna Burke (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The Manager of Opposition Business: one question on relevance has already been asked. The Prime Minister has the call.

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop interjecting—

The member for Mackellar does not. The Prime Minister has the call.

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

Thank you very much, and I am answering the Leader of the Opposition's question about intelligence staffing and people who work in national security. I am referring him to a set of figures I know he is familiar with, because he referred to them—

Ms Anna Burke (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Prime Minister will resume her seat. The Manager of Opposition Business on a point other than relevance.

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

Madam Speaker, I do not intend to raise the issue of relevance; I intend to raise the issue of the Prime Minister defying you asking her to answer the question she was asked, rather than redefining it in the way she is quite deliberately trying to do to avoid the member for Holt's speech yesterday.

Ms Anna Burke (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Manager of Opposition Business will resume his seat. The Prime Minister has been asked to refer to the question before the chair, and to be relevant to the question. The Prime Minister has the call.

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

I am very happy to be relevant. The question necessarily raises issues about intelligence, budget and staff. It necessarily raises that and I am going directly to that, but I am using a figure I know the Leader of the Opposition is familiar with because he referred to these figures in a media report in March this year where he said, 'We don't need the extra 20,000 Commonwealth public sector employees revealed in these budget papers'. The Leader of the Opposition ought to acknowledge that those figures show 7,500 extra defence military personnel—

Ms Anna Burke (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Prime Minister will return to the question.

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

2,400 extra defence reservists, extra AFP and extra ASIO staff. So of the 20,000 public servants he wants to get rid of, 12,200 of them work in our security services. So if the Leader of the Opposition wants to have a debate about staffing in security, he can answer to the Australian people what would happen with Australia's national security if he took those 12,200 people away.