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

My question is to the Prime Minister. I remind her that ASIO had concluded in August last year that a convicted jihadist terrorist was being held in low-security detention in the Adelaide Hills. When was the Prime Minister or her National Security Adviser informed of this serious security breach?

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

To the Leader of the Opposition's question I say no amount of spin or trying to raise fear changes the facts here. First and foremost—and I know that when faced with the facts a bit of screaming and distraction has to go on—the facts are these: the person he refers to was always in detention. The language that the Leader of the Opposition is using for these questions, and has clearly instructed others to use when they ask questions, is deliberately calibrated to give people another impression. This person was always in detention.

On the facts of the matter I refer the Leader of the Opposition to the statement of the Minister for Immigration and Citizenship shortly before question time. I also refer him to people who would know more than he does about security assessments, particularly the Director-General of ASIO—

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

Speaker, on a point of order: relevance. It was a very simple question: when was the Prime Minister or her office told? I think she owes it to the parliament to give us an answer to this question—

Ms Anna Burke (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Leader of the Opposition 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

The question asked contained wide-ranging imputations. Those opposite are out there trying to raise fear and I am going to answer them because I am not going to leave that uncorrected on the national record. Point No. 1 that the Leader of the Opposition has failed to say: this person was always in detention. Point No. 2 that the Leader of the Opposition has failed to say: I refer him to someone who knows more about national security than he does, someone he may never have met because he has not availed himself of appropriate briefings—that is, the Director-General of ASIO. The Director-General of ASIO said about security assessments, 'The triaging process is the most effective and efficient way of enabling the greatest resources to be applied to the greatest potential risk.' The Leader of the Opposition does not know more about these questions than the Director-General of ASIO.

On briefings to me: I was briefed after the matter was raised in Senate estimates. On briefings to the immigration minister: the immigration minister has dealt very clearly with that on the record today. On discussions in the National Security Committee, in which the Leader of the Opposition has never sat: if he had ever sat in the National Security Committee he would know that discussions in the National Security Committee are confidential.