Joe Hockey (North Sydney, Liberal Party, Manager of Opposition Business in the House) Share this | Hansard source

Page 554 of House of Representatives Practice refers to the length of answers and says that there has been a history in this place of calling for quorums on each occasion that a minister’s answer goes for more than five minutes. Given that today we had four answers in excess of five minutes each, and it is a pattern of behaviour from this government, I ask that you look into the issue of the length of answers by ministers to their own questions, and, significantly, if there is any opportunity for us as a parliament to ensure that the answers are of a shorter nature and more relevant to the questions that are being asked.

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