Joe Hockey (North Sydney, Liberal Party, Shadow Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Treasurer. I refer to the fact that the government says 240 car dealers required support. I refer to the fact that just one car dealer received phone calls from the Treasurer. I refer to the fact that the Treasurer in his last answer said only one or two car dealers’ details were faxed to his home. Treasurer, we know John Grant was one; who was the second car dealer whose details were sent to your home?

Wayne Swan (Lilley, Australian Labor Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

This is a continuation of the smear campaign against the Prime Minister and me because it is a fact that Mr Grant received no special assistance and received no special benefit whatsoever—zero. We took the same steps to assist him as we took to assist other car dealers and certainly in some cases the evidence indicates much more effort went into those cases. That was the situation at the time because, as I said, it was a difficult time. This is what Mr Delaney had to say the other morning:

There is $8 billion worth of car plan financing used every year. There was a prospect that 50 per cent of it had just disappeared.

Tony Abbott (Warringah, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, I raise a point of order. I appreciate that the Treasurer is allowed some licence but he was asked a specific question and he should answer it.

Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Treasurer will relate his material to the question.

Wayne Swan (Lilley, Australian Labor Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

A number of car dealers were in distress so they were phoning—

Opposition Members:

Opposition members—No.!

Wayne Swan (Lilley, Australian Labor Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

They weren’t? Is that the case? A number of car dealers were not in distress? You do not recognise the problem—I gather that!

Joe Hockey (North Sydney, Liberal Party, Shadow Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Answer the question!

Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The member for North Sydney will resume his seat! I am listening carefully to the Treasurer. The Treasurer is responding to the question. In his response he must relate his material to the question.

Wayne Swan (Lilley, Australian Labor Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

We heard what Mr Delaney had to say about all this yesterday. He said:

The treatment that Mr Grant, a member of mine, got was no different from the treatment all of my other members got on my intervention on their behalf to Mr Grech. They were all treated in the same way, and for the same good reason: there was no other way to do these things. In fact I think Mr Grant has been treated less well because he went to the Treasurer.

That is what Mr Delaney had to say. Mr Delaney was working very closely with the Treasury. Mr Delaney was working very closely with Mr Grech. Many dealers were dealing directly with the Treasury, including with Mr Grech. The documentation is out there which shows that many of those, or some of those, were receiving an enormous amount of assistance. We have heard that the head of Ford Credit had indicated that they were dealing, through the Treasury, with those who were looking for finance. So all of this is just a huge concoction. It is all part of the smear campaign that is being conducted against the Prime Minister and me. Now that the Leader of the Opposition has found himself in the position of being exposed as the architect of that smear campaign—

Joe Hockey (North Sydney, Liberal Party, Shadow Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker—

Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! Has the Treasurer concluded?

Wayne Swan (Lilley, Australian Labor Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

No.

Joe Hockey (North Sydney, Liberal Party, Shadow Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, I raise a point of order going to relevance. It is a simple question: who was the second car dealer that he said—

Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Treasurer will relate his material to the question.

Wayne Swan (Lilley, Australian Labor Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

What I actually said was two faxes—yet another example of the smear and the misrepresentation that those opposite have engaged in from day one over this issue because they are just so desperate. They have demonstrated in this House just how unfit for government they are. At the height of a global financial crisis they have not one single positive policy alternative for this country. All they want to do is play the politics of fear and smear because they do not have any positive alternatives for Australia. The Leader of the Opposition ought to resign.