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

My question is to the Prime Minister. I refer the Prime Minister to his last answer, where he denied that he had previously stated that the function in question was a Liberal Party fundraiser. I also refer him to his answer to the first question I raised, where he answered, 'Well, plainly, Mr Speaker, the royal commissioner himself believed that it was inappropriate to give the address at a Liberal Party fundraiser.' Prime Minister, which answer do you stand by—the last answer or the one you gave a few minutes earlier? Was this a Liberal Party fundraiser or not?

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

I stand by both answers.

Opposition Members:

Opposition members interjecting—

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

I stand by both answers, because the first answer—

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Members on my left!

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

was recounting the royal—

Opposition members interjecting—

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Members on my left will cease interjecting! The member for Adelaide is warned!

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

commissioner's decision that it would be inappropriate to appear at a Liberal Party fundraiser. Now, Mr Speaker, let me make these fundamental points. This government defends the integrity of the royal commissioner; and, if members opposite are not prepared to accept the integrity of the royal commissioner, they should say exactly what their charge against him is. If members opposite want to question the integrity of the royal commissioner, they should point out exactly what they believe the lack of integrity on the part of the royal commissioner has been.

The other point that I make—and I have made it now, I think, four times today—is that this government is certainly prepared to debate the subject matter of the royal commission. We are certainly prepared to debate the subject matter of the royal commission, because what the royal commission has exposed time and time and time again is union officials who have ripped off workers to help the unions, union officials who have ripped off workers to help themselves and union officials who have ripped off workers to advance their political careers—and some of them are sitting over there.

I say to members opposite that, if they were serious about redeeming themselves, if they were serious about helping to protect honest unionism in this country, the one thing they would do is support the Registered Organisations Commission bill, which would mean that the same standards of integrity were required of union officials as have long been required of company directors.