Bill Shorten (Maribyrnong, Australian Labor Party, Minister for the National Disability Insurance Scheme) Share this | Hansard source

I had to watch the video twice. The member for Cook actually says—and I thought it was a misprint in the transcript—'I stopped robodebt.' The sheer chutzpah! The trademark shamelessness! The man most known in Australia for the sprint to claim credit for everybody's actions, including the courage of the victims. The Leader of the Opposition, more alarmingly, says that the member for Cook's slippery language excusing himself was a strong defence.

What I have to say to the member for Cook is: how dare you take the credit for stopping robodebt, when you started robodebt! How dare you minimise the courage of the victims! How dare you take the credit of the advocates and all those who spoke against it! I say to the coalition: the member for Cook leaves you in an untenable position. You broke the law and you hurt people. You broke the law and wasted taxpayers' money. You broke the law and continue to defend the indefensible. You have a simple choice: cut him loose or he will damage the whole Liberal herd. Cut him loose now. The Leader of the Opposition must make that decision now or own robodebt for as long as he's there.

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