Tony Abbott (Warringah, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Hansard source

commissioner's decision that it would be inappropriate to appear at a Liberal Party fundraiser. Now, Mr Speaker, let me make these fundamental points. This government defends the integrity of the royal commissioner; and, if members opposite are not prepared to accept the integrity of the royal commissioner, they should say exactly what their charge against him is. If members opposite want to question the integrity of the royal commissioner, they should point out exactly what they believe the lack of integrity on the part of the royal commissioner has been.

The other point that I make—and I have made it now, I think, four times today—is that this government is certainly prepared to debate the subject matter of the royal commission. We are certainly prepared to debate the subject matter of the royal commission, because what the royal commission has exposed time and time and time again is union officials who have ripped off workers to help the unions, union officials who have ripped off workers to help themselves and union officials who have ripped off workers to advance their political careers—and some of them are sitting over there.

I say to members opposite that, if they were serious about redeeming themselves, if they were serious about helping to protect honest unionism in this country, the one thing they would do is support the Registered Organisations Commission bill, which would mean that the same standards of integrity were required of union officials as have long been required of company directors.

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