Julian McGauran (Victoria, National Party) Share this | Hansard source

Ms Gillard and Mr Garrett. Senator Evans’ ministry deals with people’s lives. When you take up the responsibility of the office of the Minister for Immigration and Citizenship it is not going to be easy and you always know that you have to make tough decisions—it is the role of any minister. Certainly when we were in government we had several immigration ministers whose daily chores were probably harder than those of a lot of other ministers, but there is a responsibility to process, which creates fairness in that ministry.

But Senator Evans has run from that responsibility. He has dispersed the responsibility. The Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet has in fact stripped this minister of much of his responsibility. What the Prime Minister has not stripped from him he has confessed to handing over to his own department. His own department will make the crucial decisions that the minister was voted in and appointed to make. He swore his oath of office at the Governor-General’s residence that he would make—