John Howard (Bennelong, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Hansard source

I do not know; I will have to check that. But let me tackle the very foundation of the question. I would have thought that, as a student of history, the Leader of the Opposition would see as absolutely absurd the proposition that, when a dictatorial regime is removed, no single official who was a member of the ruling party of the time should ever be left in a position of authority. It never happened in Germany. To my knowledge, it never happened in Japan. The Leader of the Opposition, equally as a student of history, will know that it was a condition of having a job in Saddam Hussein’s Iraq that you were a member of the Baath Party. The whole basis of this question is absurd. Of course, I will find out precisely when some notice in relation to this matter was communicated to the government and who it was. I will endeavour to help the Leader of the Opposition. But can I say, with the very greatest of respect, to the Leader of the Opposition: the question is based on an absurd proposition.

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