Kevin Rudd (Griffith, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade and International Security) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Foreign Affairs and I refer to his previous answer concerning his government’s policy success in Iraq. Does the minister recall telling parliament in February this year in relation to the $300 million ‘wheat for weapons’ scandal, ‘There is no smoking gun here’? Does the minister also recall this official record, just released by the Volcker inquiry, of his conversation with AWB chairman Andrew Lindberg on 4 October 2005, when he told the AWB that ‘The Volcker report,’ in the minister’s own language, ‘itself would be a smoking gun’? Minister, does your reference to a smoking gun—in your own language, in this, your own department’s record of conversation—refer to the AWB’s prior knowledge of its corrupt payments to Saddam Hussein’s regime, or are you referring to the government’s knowledge of the 21 cables you received as warnings about this, the worst corruption scandal in Australia’s history?

Alexander Downer (Mayo, Liberal Party, Minister for Foreign Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

First of all, I notice that the Queensland Labor Party is not too proud to take funding from AWB Ltd for the state election campaign. I just thought I might mention that.

Simon Crean (Hotham, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Regional Development) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Crean interjecting

David Hawker (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The member for Hotham!

Alexander Downer (Mayo, Liberal Party, Minister for Foreign Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Secondly, this includes the member for Griffith, no doubt. He is not too proud to take AWB’s money. But this was clearly a reference—

Kevin Rudd (Griffith, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade and International Security) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On a point of order, Mr Speaker: the minister’s reference to the taking of money from the AWB by me—

David Hawker (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Griffith will resume his seat. There is no point of order. The minister has just begun his answer. I call the Minister for Foreign Affairs.

Alexander Downer (Mayo, Liberal Party, Minister for Foreign Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I refer the honourable member to the Australian newspaper—I would not refer the Leader of the Opposition to the Australian newspaper because he does not read it—of February 2006. The member for Ryan drew my attention to it. I would have to refresh my memory in relation to the specific record of conversation, but I can assure the House of this: that was not a reference to the Australian government knowing during the relevant period that AWB Ltd was paying kickbacks to Saddam Hussein’s regime.

But the Cole inquiry is continuing its investigation and hopefully its report will be produced relatively soon. What is more, in recent days—or in recent weeks, in any case—a series of documents has been released through the Cole inquiry, so-called confessional documents from AWB Ltd. If anybody cares to read those documents, and I suspect not many members of the House would and certainly the Leader of the Opposition would not bother—

Simon Crean (Hotham, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Regional Development) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Crean interjecting

Nicola Roxon (Gellibrand, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Attorney-General) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Ms Roxon interjecting

David Hawker (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The member for Hotham is warned, and so is the member for Gellibrand!

Alexander Downer (Mayo, Liberal Party, Minister for Foreign Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

they will see that by AWB’s own admission it had not been informing the government of any activities in relation to paying kickbacks to Saddam Hussein’s regime. But one final point—because I am glad the honourable member asked the question—is that we on this side of the House were always in favour of getting rid of Saddam Hussein’s regime. You on that side of the House wanted to keep him there and allow these rorts to continue indefinitely.

Kevin Rudd (Griffith, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade and International Security) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I seek leave to table this official record of a departmental conversation between the minister and the AWB.

Leave granted.

And a second document relevant to this matter, which is an editorial from the Australian stating Mr Downer has ‘lost all credibility’ on this matter.

David Hawker (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The member for Griffith will not abuse the offer that was given.