Michael Keenan (Stirling, Liberal Party, Minister Assisting the Prime Minister for Digital Transformation) Share this | Hansard source

The answer to the member's question is yes, but we will not be distracted by this enormous nonsense that you see from the Labor Party. The actual issue here, of course, is that we are talking about search warrants that were executed in relation to a raid on the Australian Workers' Union that was looking at law breaking when the Leader of the Opposition was secretary of that union. That is what we are talking about here. The allegations are that donations were made from that union in an unlawful way. They weren't properly authorised, and one of those donations went directly to the Leader of the Opposition's own election campaign.

We have the Registered Organisations Commission that exists to make sure that members' money is actually used to benefit members, but, of course, we know that the Australian union movement has a culture where members' money is made to benefit the people who run that union. That is what we were investigating here. If you had nothing to hide, of course, all you would do is cooperate with that investigation. But what has happened is that the Labor Party and that union have run an enormous amount of interference—this is just another example—as opposed to actually answering questions about the lawful administration of that union. Well, we won't be distracted. Nobody on this side of the House believes that any organisation in this country is above the law. Unfortunately, we can't say that for the Labor Party.

Ms Rishworth interjecting—

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