Ian Macdonald (Queensland, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Northern and Remote Australia) Share this | Hansard source

I am drawn to enter this debate having been encouraged by the very fine words of my colleague Senator Cormann but also having been encouraged by the interjections from senators opposite. I have actually been to both the Marshall Islands and Mauritius. I have to say they are both great countries. The Marshall Islands has a very big shipping register but it is a developing country. It does not have the techniques, the public service and the technology that the Australian government has. It seems incredible to me that some information, which must be clearly at the Treasurer's fingertips, cannot be provided in answer to questions on notice from Senator Cormann after more than 150 days. What if it took 150 days to supply the sort of tax information that is required by these two treaties to the governments of the Marshall Islands and Mauritius? Surely it would be available in Australia, with all of its public servants, with all of its technology and with all of its information systems. There are thousands and thousands of public servants in this town who are there to record this sort of information. I am sure that if the Treasurer had one ounce of intelligence and ability—and I will give him credit for having one ounce, perhaps not much more—that information would be available. If the government of Mauritius or the government of the Marshall Islands were asking for it, it would be readily available; but when the opposition asks for it, suddenly it becomes all too hard. For a government that pays lip service to accountability and openness, this is an absolute disgrace. But what would you expect from a government led by a leader who solemnly promised not to introduce a carbon tax in her government? She did that one year ago today. When you cannot believe the Leader of the Labor Party, who is currently our Prime Minister, on that basic promise, how can you believe her on her promise of openness and accountability, which is required in relation to the explanation of taxes?

If these developing countries, the Marshall Islands and Mauritius, with their limited resources can exchange their tax information with Australia's tax information, why on earth can't the Treasurer of our nation supply what must be very basic information that he would have at his fingertips? One can only assume that, yet again, this government is demonstrating not only its incompetence but its dishonesty. It is demonstrating its inability not only to properly manage the country but also to comply with any of the promises it made in relation to (a) 'no carbon taxes in the government I lead' and (b) the openness and accountability that was supposed to be part of the new paradigm, which is this awful, dysfunctional government that we have 'not running' Australia at the present time.

Question agreed to.

I move:

That the Senate take note of the document.

In so doing, could I just refer the Senate to sections A and B, which perhaps should be called through at a later date. I did want to note the Australian Customs and Border Protection Service Report for 2009-10, as I am Deputy Chairman of the Joint Committee on the Australian Commission for Law Enforcement Integrity. We visited Customs operations in both Darwin and Sydney and I have to say by way of congratulations to the Customs and Border Protection people that they are doing a magnificent job in those two ports of entry, both seaports and airports. I am sure they are doing the same in other ports as well. In fact, having recently come through the Brisbane border protection area, I can confirm that they do equally as well in Brisbane. I am sure they do a magnificent job everywhere.

One of the very difficult things for the Australian Customs and Border Protection Service is that, beyond their normal airport and seaport operations, they are tasked with the job of intercepting all the boat people coming into our country illegally. I might take this opportunity to note that, since the announcement of what is called the 'Malaysian solution'—the solution for processing people who have come to our country by illegal means—boats have continued to arrive. You will recall, Madam Acting President, that I mentioned in a previous speech how you really cannot believe the current Leader of the Labor Party, who happens to be for the moment the Prime Minister of this country, on carbon taxes. You will remember that just one year ago today she made the solemn promise that there would be no carbon tax 'under a government I lead'. We know that she has, with impunity, broken that promise. But you might also recall that she made a promise that she would never send illegal immigrants for processing in a country that was not a signatory to the United Nations refugee convention. Yet it is clearly recorded that Malaysia is not a signatory to that convention. How can the Leader of the Labor Party, who is currently the Prime Minister, on one hand before an election say that she will not send immigrants arriving by illegal means to countries outside of Australia for processing if those countries are not signatories to the United Nations convention on refugees and, with impunity, simply break that promise after the election?

This Labor Party-Greens government is developing a real history of making solemn promises before an election and simply discarding them after the election. In relation to border protection, in fact in relation to any other promise that the current Prime Minister might ever make in relation to anything, it makes one wonder how we can possibly believe her. In relation to the carbon tax she is saying that we are going to compensate everybody. How different is that from the promise in which she said, 'I won't introduce a carbon tax'? It has transpired in the border protection—