House debates

Thursday, 25 March 2021

Questions without Notice

Morrison Government

2:35 pm

Photo of Richard MarlesRichard Marles (Corio, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Leader of the Opposition) Share this | | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister: isn't it true that, no matter what reshuffle the Prime Minister announces, after eight long years his ministers are beset by scandals, including: Senator Cash, who misled the Senate, hid behind a whiteboard and repeatedly refused to provide a formal statement to police about the AWU; the energy minister known for grassgate, watergate, Collinsville and the forged documents affair; an NDIS minister sacked following a trip to China which breached ministerial standards; a home affairs minister famous for the au pair affair; and an urban infrastructure minister who paid $30 million for a piece of land worth $3 million?

2:36 pm

Photo of Scott MorrisonScott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | | Hansard source

I'm very proud of my team. I'm proud of the fact we've got a Deputy Prime Minister who has overseen record infrastructure funding and has kept planes in the sky during the COVID-19 pandemic. I'm very proud of the Treasurer, who stood with me and announced our single biggest economic intervention, which has saved Australian lives and livelihoods through the course of the pandemic and has seen job numbers return to the level we saw pre-pandemic. I'm incredibly proud of the minister for health. I'm proud of his efforts to see Australia through and to ensure that Australia stands amongst a small band of countries as we lead the world out of the COVID pandemic. On top of that, at the same time, he continues to preside over one of the most successful pharmaceutical benefits schemes in the world.

I'm incredibly proud of Minister Cash, our deputy leader in the Senate, who has put in place the JobTrainer program which is seeing more than 300,000 additional training places this year, right in the middle of the pandemic. The minister for industry is reigniting manufacturing and getting Australians back into work and manufacturing shop floors all over the country. I'm very proud of the Minister for Foreign Affairs, because our Minister for Foreign Affairs is doing a massive job of standing up for Australia, bringing together with other world leaders the Quad and bringing into this place the foreign relations bill which is a stand-up for Australia's sovereignty like we have never seen in this country, I suspect, before.

I could mention the foreign interference legislation, which was such a critical act pulled together by the Attorney-General. I commend him for the job that he has done on that. Of course, we have the Minister for Home Affairs, who continues to keep those boats stopped. But, more than that, boats that those opposite started when they sat in those portfolios have been stopped by this government and remain stopped under this Minister for Home Affairs, who has done more to combat child sexual abuse than anyone who has sat in his role before.

I speak also of the minister for communications. Time is going to prevent me from going through the long list of achievements. I'm happy for the Leader of the Opposition to move an extension of time, but I suspect he won't. The minister for communications, together with the Treasurer and I, stood up to the global tech giants and ensured we got the right outcome for Australians. The minister for emergency management right now is supporting the victims of the floods— (Time expired)

Photo of Tanya PlibersekTanya Plibersek (Sydney, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Education) Share this | | Hansard source

I'd just ask that the Prime Minister table the document from which he had to read.

Photo of Tony SmithTony Smith (Speaker) Share this | | Hansard source

Was the Prime Minister quoting from a confidential document?

Photo of Scott MorrisonScott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | | Hansard source

Confidential notes.

Photo of Tony SmithTony Smith (Speaker) Share this | | Hansard source

Confidential notes. We'll now go to the next question.