House debates

Thursday, 10 November 2016

Questions without Notice

Attorney-General

3:02 pm

Photo of Mark DreyfusMark Dreyfus (Isaacs, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Attorney General) Share this | | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. I refer to the Attorney-General's humiliating backflip on the legal services direction just before question time. Given this backflip follows the Attorney-General's litany of scandals—including repeatedly misleading the parliament, appointing over a dozen Liberal cronies to jobs worth up to $370,000 a year and claiming people have the right to be bigots—what does the Attorney-General have to do to be sacked?

3:03 pm

Photo of Malcolm TurnbullMalcolm Turnbull (Wentworth, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | | Hansard source

I am not sure if there is anything in the standing orders about unhealthy obsessions or stalking, but the member for Isaacs's enduring interest in the Attorney-General is one that reaches a pinnacle. I have seen a lot of envy and enmity between senior members of the bar; I have never seen anything quite at this level. He asked about the legal services direction. The Attorney-General has withdrawn it. There will be a new Solicitor-General appointed shortly, and the Attorney-General will consult with the new Solicitor-General on the new directive in due course.