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

My question is to the Prime Minister. Given that the Prime Minister made the representations that established the AWU Workplace Reform Association that then enabled a fraud to occur, will she agree to establish a judicial inquiry that finally gets to the bottom of this union corruption scandal, as requested by Mr Ian Cambridge, now a commissioner of Fair Work Australia?

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

We had 15 minutes for the Leader of the Opposition to outline one clear allegation against me and he failed to do so—15 minutes for the Leader of the Opposition to actually back in his spurious claims against me this morning, 15 minutes for the Leader of the Opposition to justify why he and his team have been in a mud bucket of sleaze and smear week after week, month after month. He had 15 minutes to justify—

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

Madam Speaker, I rise on a point of order on relevance. She was asked whether she would support a judicial inquiry into this very grubby deal.

Ms Anna Burke (Chisholm, Deputy-Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Manager of Opposition Business will resume his seat. The Prime Minister has the call.

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

And there we have it, even in the interjection—more sleaze, more smear, more unsubstantiated allegations. He had 15 minutes to explain why his deputy did not tell the truth publicly about her dealings with Ralph Blewitt, 15 minutes to deal with these issues, and spectacularly failed to do so. No amount of carry-on, no amount of grasping at straws is going to change the fact that the Leader of the Opposition is drowning in a sea of sleaze and smear, and there is a reason for that.

Ms Anna Burke (Chisholm, Deputy-Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Prime Minister will return to the question.

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

There is a reason why this man is drowning in a sea of sleaze and smear, and it is that he does not have one idea for the nation's future. Instead of wasting our time, as we are invited to do by the Leader of the Opposition, we will get on with building great Labor reforms like the National Disability Insurance Scheme, using our time to improve the lives of the Australian people—

Ms Anna Burke (Chisholm, Deputy-Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Prime Minister will return to the question.

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

something the Leader of the Opposition will never understand.