Mr Tony Burke (Watson, Australian Labor Party, Manager of Opposition Business (House)) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. Is the Prime Minister honestly expecting Australians to believe that an administrative error was to blame for the government supporting a motion which used a white supremacist slogan, when it knew of the motion in September and directed its senators to vote for it yesterday? Cabinet ministers then tweeted in support of the motion last night. And today the government refused to allow this House to debate and reject it. Is this what the Prime Minister meant when he called his own government the 'muppet show'?

Scott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I always expect the Labor Party to play politics with serious issues. That's what I expect.

Opposition Members:

Opposition members interjecting—

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

Members on my left!

Scott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

These are serious issues. The Leader of the Government in the Senate has made a statement to the Senate, and I'm pleased to table that for the information of members. And, Mr Speaker, I refer the matter to the Attorney-General.

Christian Porter (Pearce, Liberal Party, Attorney-General) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the Prime Minister, and, for members opposite, I will give them the explanation that they seek. There are about 50 or 60 Senate motions that can be generated in any given sitting week. A great many are transmitted to my office—

Opposition Members:

Opposition members interjecting—

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

The Attorney-General will resume his seat.

Opposition members interjecting—

Members on my left will cease interjecting. They expect me to hear the answer so I can rule on points of order. If members keep interjecting, I will deal with them in the normal way.

Christian Porter (Pearce, Liberal Party, Attorney-General) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

What appears to have occurred on this occasion is that an email advising an approach on the motion did go out from my office. It went out without my knowledge. That appears to have happened because of the large number of motions on which my office's views are routinely sought. This one was not escalated to me because it was interpreted in my office as a motion opposing racism. The associations of the language in the second part of the motion were not picked up. The fact is that the relevant email or motion—

Opposition members interjecting—

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

Members on my left!

Christian Porter (Pearce, Liberal Party, Attorney-General) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

was not seen by me. As Minister Cormann noted, that was an error. And that is an error which includes substantial error on the part of me and my office. That obviously put my Senate colleagues and Senator Ruston in a very difficult situation. I take full responsibility for that deficient process in my office.

To the extent that the tweet was in any way interpreted to support the motion, that's not what was meant by the tweet. The tweet said that our senators deplore racism of any kind. It was meant to support Senator Ruston's statement that she and the government condemn all forms of racism. So I simply want to say that the criticism of me and my office is a completely fair cop, and I accept and apologise for the process in my office.

I use the language 'fair cop' because that is precisely the language the Leader of the Opposition wisely used when he was criticised about a year ago for producing a full political television ad meant for the Queensland market with an all-white cast under the banner of 'Australians first'—

Mr Dreyfus interjecting—

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

Member for Isaacs!

Mr Dreyfus interjecting—

The member for Isaacs is warned!

Christian Porter (Pearce, Liberal Party, Attorney-General) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

People might recall that the shadow Treasurer called that appalling—

Mr Dreyfus interjecting—

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

The member for Isaacs is warned!

Christian Porter (Pearce, Liberal Party, Attorney-General) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Grayndler called that a shocker. The Leader of the Opposition will recall his explanation that, although the final ad was cleared through his office, he'd not seen the final product, and he said, 'That was a bad oversight that won't happen again.' So it's very interesting that the Labor leader is unwilling to accept an admission of a bad oversight on the part of my office with respect to an email, but an entire TV commercial went out of his office, starring him, which he says that he never saw, and we're meant to accept that.