George Brandis (Queensland, Liberal Party, Attorney-General) Share this | Hansard source

Well, they're important because of the rise in foreign interference, Senator Macdonald. We saw that in the chamber last week in the debate on the activities of our colleague, Senator Sam Dastyari, who, I'm surprised to say, in the statement he made to the chamber on Thursday afternoon, woefully failed to address the facts or substance of the most important allegations made against him by Fairfax Media—that he had given countersurveillance advice to Mr Huang Xiangmo and conducted a covert conversation with him in October 2016. Until Senator Dastyari provides a complete explanation of that central allegation against him, that he actively sought to assist an individual—widely reported in the media as being of security interest—to evade possible security by Australian security agencies, he is plainly unfit to hold his place in the Senate, and the Leader of the Opposition, Mr Shorten, should show a spine and show him the door.