Peter Dutton (Dickson, Liberal Party, Minister for Immigration and Border Protection) Share this | Hansard source

As it turns out, not only is the Leader of the Opposition unable to muster the leadership capacity to draw the Left and the Right together to support a sensible border protection policy; it now turns out that the Left, under the member for Grayndler, is mounting some sort of insurgent behaviour against the Leader of the Opposition on this fundamental issue. It seems that this civil war that has broken out between the Leader of the Opposition and the member for Grayndler has found a new home in relation to the citizenship test. I think it is a basic question that most Australians can answer. For example, if people want to become Australian citizens, should they have an adequate level of English proficiency? Should that be a basic test? Yes, it should, and that is the feedback we have had around the country. But do the Labor Party support that or oppose it? Well, some of them support it, but others oppose it.

The problem is that the Leader of the Opposition has no clue which way to land this issue. The trouble is that this civil war in the Labor Party is going to continue. It will continue. Where there is smoke, there is fire when it comes to the member for Grayndler. I like that he was cuddling up beside the Leader of the Opposition before for the photo for the Saturday papers. He knows what is going on here, and he is fanning the fire. Most Australians are completely bewildered. They think this Leader of the Opposition is not the genuine bloke that he pretends to be. Do you know what? They are dead right. (Time expired)

Ms Burney interjecting—

See this speech in context