House debates Questions without Notice

Minister for Human Services

Wednesday, 10 February 2016 House of Representatives

Mark Dreyfus

Mark Dreyfus Isaacs, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Attorney General

2:28 pm

My question is to the Minister for Human Services. I refer to the minister's trip to China and his answer yesterday that he would fully assist the Secretary of the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet in his review. Has the minister informed—

Unidentified interjection - Hansard doesn't record who said this

Honourable Members:

Honourable members interjecting—

Tony Smith

Tony Smith Speaker

The member for Isaacs will resume his seat. The member for Lyons is warned. The Leader of the House will cease interjecting. If members on my right wish me to hear the question, they will need to listen to it in silence, no matter the provocation. Otherwise we will waste a lot of time with me asking for the question to be repeated multiple times. The member for Isaacs has the call.

Mark Dreyfus

Mark Dreyfus Isaacs, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Attorney General

My question is to the Minister for Human Services. I refer to the minister's trip to China and his answer yesterday that he would fully assist the Secretary of the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet in his review. Has the minister informed the Parkinson inquiry that, as a private citizen, he not only met the Chinese vice minister for land and resources while in China, but was accompanied to that meeting by executives of Nimrod Resources? Will he also confirm this information to the parliament?

Honourable members interjecting —

Tony Smith

Tony Smith Speaker

The member for Grayndler will cease interjecting. I have not called the minister. Members on my left will cease interjecting. I have also asked the Leader of the House to cease interjecting. He probably did not hear me, because he was interjecting himself. The Minister for Human Services has the call.

Stuart Robert

Stuart Robert Fadden, Liberal Party, Minister for Veterans’ Affairs

2:29 pm

I thank the member for his question and I refer the member to my previous answer yesterday.