Ms Julie Bishop (Curtin, Liberal Party, Deputy Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. Will the Prime Minister guarantee that unaccompanied children will not be amongst the 800 asylum seekers sent to Malaysia as part of the government's latest asylum seeker policy?

Julia Gillard (Lalor, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Let me tell you one thing: I am not going to take lessons on compassion from this opposition given its track record in government on children in detention, including unaccompanied minors. I am not going to take lessons on compassion from people who soiled themselves in government with a track record—

Christopher Pyne (Sturt, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Education, Apprenticeships and Training) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On a point of order, Mr Speaker: the Prime Minister was asked a very straightforward question without any hyperbole and I would ask you to ask her to answer it directly.

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

The Prime Minister has been asked a question. She will directly answer the question.

Julia Gillard (Lalor, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On the question of treatment of children, this government has a record of ensuring that children of asylum seekers in this country are treated better than they were by the government that the Deputy Leader of the Opposition was a cabinet minister of. So let us not make any assumptions about treatment of children and who understands the needs of children best; let us just look to comparative track records—ours versus yours—and I will highlight ours in comparison with yours any day of the week.

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

Order! The Prime Minister will direct her remarks through the chair.

Julia Gillard (Lalor, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On the question of the arrangement with Malaysia, I am not going to stand here in this parliament today and engage in a game with the Leader of the Opposition or the Deputy Leader of the Opposition on something as serious as this. What we are going to do is send the clearest possible message—

Opposition members interjecting—

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

Order!

Sophie Mirabella (Indi, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Innovation, Industry and Science) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

One royal wedding invitation and you think you are a queen.

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

The six-week break was obviously not long enough for people to think about the dignity of the House. I just hope that, for the rest of the day, you might think of the dignity of the House. The Prime Minister will respond to the question as required by the standing orders. The standing orders also require that she be heard in silence.

Julia Gillard (Lalor, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you, Mr Speaker. The last words I used before you intervened to deal with the opposition were that I am not going to play a political game with the opposition about this today. The fact that this is all a political game for them was then verified by the interjection of the member for Indi. What this government will do is send a strong message to people smugglers that they cannot represent that they can get people to Australia, because when they make that representation the people they are making it to are at risk of being taken to Malaysia and ending up at the back of the queue.

I can also say to the Deputy Leader of the Opposition that, with our increase of 4,000 in the humanitarian intake, I bet some of them are children. She like might like to explain why the Leader of the Opposition is opposing that intake.