Andrew Leigh (Fenner, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Assistant Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Small Business, and it goes to his responsibility for the Australian Bureau of Statistics. The ABS had five years to prepare for the census and the government made an absolute shambles of it. But the government has given the same agency just weeks to prepare for the $122 million postal survey. Has the minister sought or received advice on whether there are any risks associated with this process?

Michael McCormack (Riverina, National Party, Minister for Small Business) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Fenner for his very first question to me. It's taken more than 12 months from him to finally ask a question. But did I get a question about small business? No. Did I get a question about small business tax cuts? No. Did I get a question about the instant asset write-off which has been extended for 12 months? No.

What could be more fair than giving the people their say about the issue of same-sex marriage? We are giving all Australians a say. The Turnbull government is committed to delivering on its pre-election promise to give the Australian people a say on whether or not the law should be changed to allow same-sex couples to marry. I am pleased that the member for Fenner has asked me this, because he can participate in this as well, as all Australians can.

If the member opposite and many of those opposite had not cast such doubt on the census prior to the census, maybe we wouldn't have had such questions about the census before.

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

The minister will resume his seat. The Manager of Opposition Business on a point of order?

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

The question quite specifically is asking whether advice has been sought and received on the risks.

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

The Manager of Opposition Business will resume his seat.

Mr Pyne interjecting—

The Leader of the House will cease interjecting. The minister will resume his seat; I haven't called him.

Mr Pyne interjecting—

The Leader of the House will cease interjecting. The Manager of Opposition Business is right. The 30 seconds that was a question was specific, but the preceding 20 seconds certainly was not. That widens it beyond if the member for Fenner had simply just asked the last part of the question, so the minister's in order.

Michael McCormack (Riverina, National Party, Minister for Small Business) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Fenner might cast doubt on the last census, but can I assure him that the response rate for households was 95.1 per cent, on a par with any previous census. It was on a par with the census conducted by the member for Maribyrnong.

Opposition members interjecting—

You might laugh and you might mock, but your electorates rely on the information that comes from that census. When you're knocking the census, you're knocking the good public servants who work very hard. The member for Canberra and the member for Fenner should be sticking up more for those public servants who work for the Australian Bureau of Statistics. By knocking the census you are knocking the public servants who work for the ABS—good, hardworking, diligent public servants. I would have thought better of the member for Fenner. I would have thought better of him prior to the last year's census, and I would have thought better of him now.

An issue has been directed to the Australian Statistician, David Kalisch, asking the Australian Bureau of Statistics to request statistical information from all Australians on the electoral roll as to their views on whether or not the law in relation to same-sex marriage should be changed to allow same-sex couples to marry. What could be more fair than that? Give the people their say. If a plebiscite is so good for the republic, as we had from left field from the member for Maribyrnong recently, why not have a postal survey for and on behalf of the people for same-sex couples to marry?