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

My question is the Prime Minister. I refer to evidence revealed in Senate estimates that the spending on the Prime Minister's official residences will increase by 5.3 per cent to $1.7 million next year. Why is the Prime Minister increasing spending on his official residences while cutting indexation of pensions? Why should pensioners get a lower indexation rate than the Prime Minister's residences?

Government Members:

Government members interjecting—

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

There will be silence on my right.

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

This really is pretty low from the Leader of the Opposition. It really is pretty low for the Leader of the Opposition to come into this parliament and ask this kind of question. The decisions in respect of the official residences are all made on the basis of departmental advice. One of the very first things that I did on winning the election was to say to the departmental officials that I was not going to occupy the mansion that they had rented. Of all the various charges that could be levelled against this government, this is absolutely the least sustainable.