House debates Questions without Notice
Ministerial Staff: Code of Conduct
Ms Catherine King Ballarat, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Health
3:06 pm
My question is to the Prime Minister. Is the Prime Minister aware that a censure motion is being debated in the Senate against the Assistant Minister for Health for breaching the ministerial standards, for failing to produce documents and for misleading the parliament? When will the Prime Minister act and sack this minister?
Mrs Bronwyn Bishop Speaker
Before I call the Prime Minister, I would say to the member for Ballarat that this House is not responsible for the business in another place. The Prime Minister has the call.
Tony Abbott Warringah, Liberal Party, Prime Minister
3:07 pm
I can inform the shadow minister opposite that ministers who behave inappropriately will be punished. But no-one has done anything wrong in the case that this shadow minister is so preoccupied with. Not a single person has done anything wrong in this case—no-one; nothing. No-one has done anything wrong. Nothing wrong has been done.
Mr Dreyfus interjecting—
Mrs Bronwyn Bishop Speaker
The member for Isaacs will remove himself under 94(a).
The member for Isaacs then left the chamber—
Tony Abbott Warringah, Liberal Party, Prime Minister
Not only is there no fire; there is not even any smoke. Frankly, Labor should find a different tree to bark up.