Joel Fitzgibbon (Hunter, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Agriculture) Share this | Hansard source

I am happy for him to try. But he can he come to the dispatch box and say why he changed it at all. Can you give us some sort of logical and comprehensible explanation why? Let us go through the process. There is a bill—then presents a report. The former Labor government, with the assistance of course of the experts, including the department, produce a very substantial bill, a very important bill: our new quarantine bill, known as the Biosecurity Act. We were about to put it to parliament and the election came along, and of course the system stopped.

Fifteen months later he brought the bill back. Think about that, Madam Speaker: 15 months it took to bring a bill that was ready to go through the parliament and come back again. He stands here and talks about how important it is, but it took 15 months. But when it comes back, it is different. When I got a briefing from his people, I asked them what were the differences if any between the 2012 bill and this bill. Guess what? There was no mention of the changes to the Inspector-General of Biosecurity.

Minister, when you come to the dispatch box, yes, argue your case, embarrass yourself and try to argue that your original bill did not undermine that position—I am happy for you to do that—but, just as important, come and give us a logical explanation why you found it necessary to change Labor's original proposal, as recommended by the Beale review.

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