House debates
Tuesday, 23 February 2010
Personal Explanations
3:33 pm
Tony Abbott (Warringah, Liberal Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
Mr Speaker, I wish to make a personal explanation.
Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
Does the honourable member claim to have been misrepresented?
Tony Abbott (Warringah, Liberal Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
Yes.
Tony Abbott (Warringah, Liberal Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
I claim to be misrepresented by the Minister for Health and Ageing in question time today. To correct the misrepresentation I refer to an article in the electronic version of the Age yesterday by the minister’s former speech writer which suggested that the golf balls with logos were the product of her administration, not mine.
Nicola Roxon (Gellibrand, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Health and Ageing) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
Mr Speaker, I wish to make a personal explanation.
Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
Does the honourable member claim to have been misrepresented?
Nicola Roxon (Gellibrand, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Health and Ageing) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
Yes, by the Leader of the Opposition.
Nicola Roxon (Gellibrand, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Health and Ageing) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
Unfortunately, the creative material that the Leader of the Opposition is relying on led to the investigation which enabled me to clearly and correctly say in parliament today that these were part of a campaign in May 2007, which, as I understand, was a time when the Leader of the Opposition was the Minister for Health and Ageing—and they are his.
3:34 pm
Joel Fitzgibbon (Hunter, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
Mr Speaker, I wish to make a personal explanation.
Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
Does the honourable member claim to have been misrepresented?
Joel Fitzgibbon (Hunter, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
Today Fairfax newspapers ran more stories featuring me, which are untrue and defamatory. Fairfax also reported that I had threatened legal action but had failed to commence that action. This no doubt was designed to question my intention to do so. I can assure Fairfax—and they know this—that I have made demand and I intend to go through with it.
Fairfax also mischievously reported today on court action taken yesterday by Ms Helen Liu but failed to say what it was about. I can inform the House that the action is seeking to force Fairfax to hand over for independent forensic testing documents it claims belong to her and on which it has published a number of highly defamatory stories. Fairfax refuses to hand over the documents. The question now becomes: what is it they have to fear from this independent forensic examination?
3:35 pm
Bernie Ripoll (Oxley, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
Mr Speaker, I wish to make a personal explanation.
Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
Does the honourable member claim to have been misrepresented?
Bernie Ripoll (Oxley, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
In the Tasmanian Examiner over the weekend there was a scurrilous story about travel expenses, carrying my photo but under the title of Senator Bushby from Tasmania—and I take great offence at being referred to as a senator.