Tony Abbott (Warringah, Liberal Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That so much of standing and sessional orders be suspended as would prevent the Leader of the Opposition from moving forthwith the following motion:

That the Prime Minister be called to explain how the Australian people can trust her Government to control our borders and protect the Australian people from threats including the illegal importation of weapons used in gun crimes when the Government's failed border protection policies have overwhelmed the Budget and undermined the ability of agencies that manage our borders to do their job.

This is urgent. It should take priority over all other matters before this House, and the Prime Minister should stay and listen. There is no more important duty of government than to protect our borders. This Prime Minister cannot stop the boats, she cannot stop the guns and she cannot stop leaving the parliament because she will not face the truth about the incompetence and dishonesty of this government. This is an incompetent and untrustworthy Prime Minister who lacks the courage to stay in the parliament and listen to the truth about this government. That is why standing orders must be suspended. This is the most important business before this House.

We all know that blow-outs in border protection have cost $1 billion a year—

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, I rise on a point of order on relevance. Is the suspension of standing orders the same as the matter of public importance which is the next item?

Peter Slipper (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

There is no point of order. The Leader of the Opposition has the call.

Tony Abbott (Warringah, Liberal Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

There has been a blow-out of $1 billion because of this government's failure to protect our borders from illegal boats and, as a result of this, there have now been cuts that have resulted in this government's failure to protect our borders from the penetration of illegal guns. This is why standing orders must be suspended. The blow-out in costs on boat people has led to a cut in spending on the screening of imported cargoes. Border protection failures on boats are now leading to border protection failures on guns. There could be no more important issue for this House to consider right now.

There have been enormous cuts to screening as a result of the blow-out in border-protection costs because this government cannot stop the boats. Since 2010—and this is why standing orders must be suspended—340 staff have been axed from the Australian Customs and Border Protection Service. The budget of Customs for cargo screening has been decreased. It has been cut by almost $60 million. This has resulted in a 75 per cent cut to air cargo screenings and a 25 per cent cut to sea cargo screenings. This is why standing orders must be suspended. Less than five per cent of sea cargo is X-ray screened and less than one per cent of sea cargo is physically examined. The situation is much worse for air cargo. Is it any wonder that illegal guns are coming into our country?

Peter Slipper (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Leader of the Opposition will address the motion.

Tony Abbott (Warringah, Liberal Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

This is why standing orders must be suspended. This government's incompetence on border protection is not just about boats, it is about guns as well. This is the most important business that the parliament could possibly discuss right now.

We know, from a press conference in Sydney today, that 140 Glock firearm magazines have been imported into this country. They are all imported. Every single illegal handgun in this country has been imported. There are far more—and this is why standing orders must be suspended—because of this government's cuts to border screening. There are, according to the New South Wales police, 160 to 220 illegal firearms in this country because border protection screening was unable to stop this particular operation from bringing illegal handguns into our country, and this is why standing orders must be suspended. Those 160 to 220 guns are enough to fight a street battle. They are enough to sustain a gangland war. They are enough to terrorise our streets. It is happening because of this government's incompetence in maintaining proper border protection: not just border protection against illegal boats, but border protection against illegal guns. This is why standing orders must be suspended. This is why this motion should take priority.

There have been 88 drive-by shootings in Sydney over the last 12 months. There is a reign of terror on the streets of Sydney and as those shots ring out, the people of Sydney think of the crime gangs. They think of the police trying to protect them from those crime gangs. And now they should also think of this Prime Minister, whose incompetence and failures on border protection have materially contributed to this particular social disaster. Is there no end to this government's, and this Prime Minister's, incompetence? We have the pink batts disaster, the school halls disaster, the live cattle export disaster and now we have gun crime in Sydney aided and abetted by the incompetence of this government in maintaining a proper border protection regime. It is not just an inadequate regime against illegal boats but a totally inadequate regime against illegal guns as well.

Today, the head of Customs, Mr Michael Carmody, said, 'It is absolutely impossible for every one of those air containers and cargo containers to be searched.' That is what he said and, I tell you what, it is so much harder as a result of the cuts to screening by this government. A 75 per cent cut to air cargo screening and a 25 per cent cut to sea cargo screening just makes their job so much harder. That is a result of the incompetence of this government. Their incompetence in stopping the boats flows directly into their incompetence in stopping the guns. They cannot stop the boats, and now we know, because of what has happened in New South Wales today, they cannot stop the guns either. That means that the safety of the people of Sydney has been put at risk.

But there is some good news, and this is why standing orders should be suspended. Mike Carmody said today that, 'It's important for those out there to understand that you have agencies at both a Commonwealth and a state level who now work together to address issues.' At least Mike Carmody understands that; I wish Fair Work Australia understood that. Mike Carmody understands that; I wish Minister Shorten understood that. That is why standing orders should be suspended. The only federal agency that does not believe in cooperating with other law enforcement agencies to investigate and prevent crime is Fair Work Australia.

We have a very serious situation on the streets of Sydney. Gun crime—in particular, drive-by shootings—are becoming rampant. Many parts of Western Sydney have been terrorised by drive-by shootings. There is almost nothing that could be more contrived to damage people's enjoyment of their neighbourhoods than drive-by shootings. Every single one of these drive-by shootings has involved an illegally imported gun. Every single one of those illegally imported guns has got past Customs, and they are getting past Customs because this government has savagely cut Customs funding because it cannot stop the boats.

This is an utterly incompetent and utterly untrustworthy government. It is a government which frankly should have died of shame and should be gone. (Time expired)

Peter Slipper (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Is the motion seconded?

Scott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Immigration and Citizenship) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I second the motion. There is a falsehood that is being perpetrated by this government today and that is why standing orders must be suspended. The Prime Minister must explain to this House how the government can make bold-faced claims today about their credentials on border protection when the very issue they cite—the importation of illegal weapons, as exposed by the New South Wales Police Force—has exposed their own failures on our borders.

The revelation that gun components were smuggled into my own electorate at the Sylvania Waters post office is bad enough. There must now be a full audit of all transactions conducted by that post office, ordered by the Minister for Home Affairs, who is at the table, and the minister for communications if necessary. The fact that the guns have been allegedly used in the drive-by shootings that have plagued Sydney is even worse. Whether components of the weapons smuggled through the Sylvania Waters post office were used in a drive-by shooting weeks later the Prime Minister was unable to confirm today. But I am reliably informed—

Peter Slipper (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The honourable member will return to the motion being debated.

Scott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Immigration and Citizenship) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

This is why standing orders must be suspended—because the Prime Minister must explain why the Australian people can have confidence in her when these things are occurring. There have been 60 shootings. This is a matter of urgent importance. There were 60 shootings in Sydney in the year to the end of February. Fortunately, there were no fatalities. The incident that sparked the post office investigation occurred in December of last year. That investigation went all through January. It was not until February that Customs became part of this investigation. They were late to the operation because they did not know that our borders had been breached. That is why standing orders must be suspended—for the Prime Minister to explain.

The fact that our border agency did not prevent this breach or know about it without the good work of the New South Wales Police Force is a cause for major concern. That is why the Prime Minister must explain. If you can bring in components of Glocks then what other components are being brought in across our borders for even more serious weaponry that threaten our national security? If it takes the New South Wales police to find out when our borders have been breached because the Customs and Border Protection Service does not know, then what is happening in the other states and territories? That is why the Prime Minister must come into this place today and explain herself. What assurance can this Prime Minister give to Sydney families and those across the country that her failed border protection regime is up to the job when this is her record?

We do not make weapons in this country for non-military purposes. This was a fact confirmed today by the New South Wales police. New guns are on our streets in Sydney because they are getting across our borders. They crossed our borders on this government's watch and found their way all the way to Sylvania Waters. That is why standing orders must be suspended. Commissioner Scipione recently stated in reference to the guns imported from overseas that this is an urgent issue and a toxic problem. 'It is happening,' he said. 'That is the elephant in the room,' he said. This elephant in the room must be debated. That is why standing orders must be suspended. Commissioner Scipione tells us clearly that this is a serious problem.

There will be many reasons why the Prime Minister cannot give this assurance and why those on that side of the House today will prevent this matter being urgently debated in this place. They will do that because they know that the key reason is what the Leader of the Opposition has plainly set out: this government has lost control of our borders. In losing control of our borders, they have undermined the capacity of their agencies to control those borders for even more serious purposes. When you cannot stop the boats, you cannot stop the guns—and you undermine the capacity of the government agencies to do their jobs.

Peter Slipper (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member will return to the substance of the question.

Scott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Immigration and Citizenship) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Standing orders must be suspended because this is an urgent issue that is facing the citizens of New South Wales. It is an urgent issue that has been highlighted by the best policeman in this country, Commissioner Scipione, and he is saying that it needs attention. Those on that side of the House say this should not be debated. Those on that side of the House are saying this is a matter we should just scurry away from. But I know that the Customs and Border Protection Service was not involved in that investigation until February. It is good that they finally caught up, but what the people of Sydney want—and they want it debated in this House—is for these matters to get full attention from this House. (Time expired)

Jason Clare (Blaxland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Home Affairs ) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I should start by saying that what is happening in Sydney is extremely serious. There is a risk, where there are drive-by shootings—people shooting at homes across Western Sydney—that someone will get hurt. There is a risk that families enjoying their normal lives in the middle of the day or the middle of the night could be shot and killed. I treat this very, very seriously. That is why one of the first things I did as the Minister for Home Affairs and the Minister for Justice—

Peter Slipper (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The minister will address the reasons why standing and sessional orders, in his view, ought not be suspended, not the substance of what would be the subsequent motion.

Jason Clare (Blaxland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Home Affairs ) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My argument to you, Mr Speaker, is that standing orders should not be suspended, for a number of reasons. Firstly, they should not be suspended because this debate will occur in this House at the end of question time. The member for Stirling has placed this on the parliament's record as a matter of public importance, and that debate will occur this afternoon. That is the appropriate opportunity to have that debate.

Secondly, standing orders should not be suspended now because of the evidence to the contrary. Today is a very important day for Customs. It is a very important day for law enforcement. The New South Wales police, working with Customs and Border Protection as well as the Federal Police and the Australian Crime Commission, have worked together to dismantle a major illegal firearms syndicate. The work they did yesterday shows the terrific job our law enforcement agencies do, working together. That stands in stark contrast to what the Leader of the Opposition said in his argument about why standing orders should be suspended.

This all came to pass because of a number of things. A Glock firearm was seized by New South Wales police in Wiley Park. The Australian Crime Commission, working with the New South Wales police, did a trace analysis of that firearm. That analysis helped to trace the gun back to the company that makes it in Austria and, in turn, to a gun distributor in Germany, which in turn led to the arrests in Sylvania Waters yesterday. Since I have been in this job I have made a point of making this my top priority, speaking with the New South Wales minister for police and speaking with the Australian Crime Commission to make sure that whatever resources the New South Wales police need they get. The Australian Crime Commission told me, in my first briefing, that they have made that very clear to the New South Wales police and that, as a result of that, they have provided tracing analysis services as well as their Fusion Centre to identify criminals involved in this market. That is why standing orders should not be suspended—because of this evidence to the contrary. I have done the same thing with the Australian Federal Police, and they have made it clear that they stand ready to help the New South Wales police wherever they are needed. And it has been the same with Customs.

What is the result of all that? Working with the Liberal police minister in New South Wales, Mike Gallacher, we directed the Australian Crime Commission to conduct a national intelligence audit of the illegal firearms market in Australia. This is why standing orders should not be suspended—because of the evidence presented here to the country. Finding one gun in Western Sydney and then tracing that and identifying who was responsible for importing it led to the arrest of four people and the shutting down, or dismantling, of a criminal syndicate. The work I have done is to direct the Australian Crime Commission to do that work for every single firearm that has been seized by police over the last 12 months and to do the same sort of analysis for all the shootings, all the bullets and all the casings that have been found, whether they are in Western Sydney or in South Australia or anywhere across the country. That work, that intelligence, will assist police right across the country, and this is why standing orders should not be suspended, because of this evidence of the work that we are doing as a government, hand in glove with the New South Wales government, with the South Australian government and with all governments across the country. That will lead to a presentation of this criminal intelligence information to a meeting of attorneys-general next month and will lead to recommendations to police ministers when they meet in July this year.

The Leader of the Opposition and the shadow minister, the member for Stirling, talk about cuts to Customs. It is a bit rich, the Liberal Party talking about cuts, when they have a $70 billion black hole.

Opposition members interjecting—

Peter Slipper (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The minister will be directly relevant.

Jason Clare (Blaxland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Home Affairs ) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It is a bit rich, when they want to sack 12,000 government workers.

Peter Slipper (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The minister will address the motion before the chair.

Jason Clare (Blaxland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Home Affairs ) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

This is why standing orders should not be suspended—because these are the things we could have discussed in question time, and these are the things we will have the opportunity to discuss when the matter of public importance comes up after this debate. The Liberal Party lecturing anyone about cuts is a bit like Ralph Malph lecturing the Fonz about cool. These guys are experts when it comes to cuts. And this is why standing orders should not be suspended. A couple of weeks ago the shadow minister said that the decision of the CEO of Customs to reduce the size of the SES by 11 people could be described as 'drastic action'. I would ask the shadow minister: how does he compare that with the 12,000 people that he wants to sack from the Australian Public Service? The Leader of the Opposition has made it clear that that will happen in education, in health and in defence.

Peter Slipper (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The minister will address the question before the chair, otherwise he will resume his seat.

Jason Clare (Blaxland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Home Affairs ) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The other reason not to suspend standing orders is the obvious nature of this debate. The policy of the Leader of the Opposition on border protection—his idea of turning back the boats—is unravelling, day after day. Trying to suspend standing orders is an attempt to distract from that policy. If truth be told, you have the UN saying that the coalition's border protection policy of turning back the boats will not work, you also have the Indonesian ambassador saying that it will not work, but most importantly you have got senior officers in the Australian Navy saying that it would put Australian lives at risk.

Peter Slipper (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The minister will resume his seat. The question before the chair is that the motion for suspension of standing and sessional orders be agreed to. I call the—

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I am seeking the call on this motion.

Peter Slipper (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Leader of the House will resume his seat. He was certainly second on his feet.

Michael Keenan (Stirling, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Justice, Customs and Border Protection) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I am seeking the call on this motion about the suspension of standing orders and why it is so important.

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, I rise on a point of order. It is the normal practice for there to be even numbers of speakers. On this item, the opposition has had two speakers in a row; the government has had one. I am seeking to be the second speaker on the government's side in this debate.

Peter Slipper (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The time for this debate has expired.

Opposition members interjecting—

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

That's what I was after, you moron.

Peter Slipper (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Leader of the House will return to the despatch box and withdraw that term.

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I withdraw, Mr Speaker.

Peter Slipper (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The question before the chair is that the motion moved by the honourable Leader of the Opposition for the suspension of standing and sessional orders be agreed to.

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

I ask that further questions be placed on the Notice Paper.