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 the Prime Minister that when the opposition first revealed that a convicted Egyptian jihadist terrorist was living amongst families in a low-security detention centre in the Adelaide Hills she dismissed it as a very ugly campaign to raise fear in the community. So I ask the Prime Minister: if this was such a beat-up, why has the government announced an inquiry into it?

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

I have announced an inquiry because I happen to think that facts matter. I know that they are alien to the Leader of the Opposition but I do believe it is important that facts matter and that this matter is the subject of an inquiry by an independent officeholder. I understand that a little bit earlier today the Leader of the Opposition was himself saying there should be an independent inquiry. Well, there is an independent inquiry, as announced by me yesterday.

To the Leader of the Opposition more generally, what we have seen from the opposition across this parliamentary fortnight is an ill-informed fear campaign. We had the Leader of the Opposition claiming ASIO resources had been cut across the life of this government—that is not true, but not surprising, given he has never been briefed by ASIO during the life of this parliament. Then, of course, Senator Brandis, who was briefed by ASIO, could not wait to rush up to a TV camera to burble out what he had been briefed on. Then, of course, yesterday we had the unedifying spectacle of the shadow minister for immigration trying to have a parliamentary committee, without statutory authority to investigate this matter, do that investigation. Then of course the member for Stirling could not approach the dispatch box and even move a motion. On top of all of that—

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

Madam Speaker, on a point of order: my question invited the Prime Minister to concede that there was actually something in what the opposition has been saying.

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

The Leader of the Opposition will resume his seat. That was an absolute abuse of a point of order. The Prime Minister has the call.

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

Thank you very much. Then in terms of the campaign that has been pursued by the opposition: wrong on ASIO; then revealing an ASIO briefing; the shadow minister for immigration wrong on the powers of a parliamentary committee; the member for Stirling unable to approach the dispatch box and use the words 'I seek leave'; the Deputy Leader of the Opposition out, nudge-nudge, wink-wink, 'We've got an arrangement with Indonesia' and then having to shamble away from all of that—across this week when we have had to listen to so much nonsense from the opposition on national security, I think at the end of the week that has been we are entitled to say that every day the opposition has put in a performance where it has had no acquaintance with the facts. A fact has never actually mattered to them: not about ASIO resources; not about our relationship with Indonesia; not about who can mount what sort of inquiry. So, to the Leader of the Opposition—

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

Madam Speaker—

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

Order! The Manager of Opposition Business will resume his seat!

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

if he is interested in a bit of humility, he might want to start with some humility about the opposition's performance this week and he might also want to verify to the Australian people that they have no solutions on border security. They have been stepping away, piece by piece, from any representations about results in border security—no answers, just a campaign of fear where the facts have never mattered.