Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Deputy Leader of the Opposition in the Senate) Share this | Hansard source

You are quite right, Senator Macdonald. In relation to the question that Senator Macdonald asked, he actually rang Senator Carr’s office and said, ‘I’m going to ask you a question about this particular dam.’ So what did he do? He comes in here and reads out a brief—I think the only brief he had at question time, the one that he was warned about—but he had the wrong brief. What do you have to do to assist a minister? Indeed, Senator Faulkner and Senator Conroy were trying to assist him during question time as well. Senator Faulkner unfortunately let out some words that Senator Kemp misunderstood as having been said by Senator Carr. But really, Senator Carr had no idea. It was an embarrassment. The people of Australia clearly deserve better ministerial representation in this place.

Prime Minister Rudd made a promise to the Australian people that there would be accountability, that there would be transparency and that ministers would give full and proper answers. What we saw today from Senator Carr was obfuscation writ large in relation to every single area that he was asked about. Senator Carr has dismally failed on all the counts that Mr Rudd says that we as the Australian people can judge him on. (Time expired)