Bill Shorten (Maribyrnong, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. Why is the Prime Minister hiding his 900-page plan of nasty cuts to Western Australians? Don't Western Australians deserve to know what the government has got in store for them before the by-election on 5 April?

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

Madam Speaker, on a point of order: that question does not fit within the standing orders. It is an assertion masquerading as a question. It is argument. It is hypothetical. It could not possibly be in order.

Mr Tony Burke (Watson, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Madam Speaker, on a point of order: the fact that the Prime Minister is hiding the document was confirmed by the Prime Minister in this question time.

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

That is not a point of order, that is argument. The Prime Minister has the call.

Tony Abbott (Warringah, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

We are carefully considering the Commission of Audit report—as, surely, all members of this parliament would expect us to. Of course it will be published once the government has carefully considered its recommendations. This is no great breach of precedent. We have had the interim report for less than a month. As I recall, the former government sat on the Gonski report for at least two months before it was released. My recollection is that the Henry tax review was considered by the former government for some four months before it was released. We will do justice to the Commission of Audit by carefully considering the report. The Leader of the Opposition suggested that we are hiding something from the voters of Western Australia. The one thing that the Leader of the Opposition is hiding is his true attitude towards the mining tax. The Leader of the Opposition went to Perth last week and was asked about the mining tax—and why shouldn't he be asked about the mining tax; let's face it, it is an anti Western Australian tax—

Mr Tony Burke (Watson, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Madam Speaker, on a point of order: under standing order 104, this cannot possibly be directly relevant.

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It was a very broadly worded question. The Prime Minister has the call.

Tony Abbott (Warringah, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

In what was an absolutely brilliant interrogation by David Speers of Sky News the Leader of the Opposition was reduced to bubbling incoherence, saying that he really does not support the mining tax in Perth. But we know he supports the mining tax here in Canberra. This is a Leader of the Opposition who supports one thing in Perth and a different thing in Canberra. A Leader of the Opposition who decides what he supports depending on what city he is in is not fit to exercise leadership in this country.