Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is addressed to the Prime Minister, and it follows his extraordinary answer to my last question. The Prime Minister has said about the corrupt sports rorts program: 'All we did was provide information.' So why did the Audit Office tell the Senate that the Prime Minister's office emailed Senator McKenzie's office indicating, 'These are the ones we think should be included in the list of approved projects'?

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

I repeat what I just said. I said to the House, in response to the last question, is that we passed on information about other funding options or programs relevant to project proposals and we provided information based on the representations made to us. That's exactly what I said. Why does the Leader of the Opposition have an issue with the government talking to people in communities about what their priorities for community projects should be? He makes reference to my earlier answer. I know, and the Auditor-General reported, that the leader of the Labor Party, when responsible for a program—

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

The Prime Minister will resume his seat. The Manager of Opposition Business.

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

You made a ruling yesterday with respect to, when we refer to an earlier answer, that gives rise to the question but doesn't change the relevance rule to then refer to anything that was in the previous answer. The Prime Minister is now using exactly that device to try to use information that would not otherwise be relevant to the question.

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

Yes. I'm just going to make the point, because it's important for everyone to understand: when a question is asked that refers to an earlier answer, it enables the question to go to something said in the earlier answer. What it doesn't enable the answer to do is to refer to things that weren't in the question. I hope I've expressed that as clearly as I can. I'm listening to the Prime Minister carefully. I also said that, whilst he is on the policy topic, he is able—and this has been the case with rulings of, I think, probably all speakers in the last 20 or 30 years—to compare and contrast briefly, but he doesn't have the licence of the earlier answer to repeat everything he's said.

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

Thank you, Mr Speaker. I want to refer to the evidence provided by the ANAO at the committee in the Senate in relation to the matter that the Leader of the Opposition has now raised. He has said: 'Yes, it wasn't the case that we could see that those which came directly from the Prime Minister's office were more successful than those that came from a local member direct to the minister's office rather than through the Prime Minister's office.' I hope that the Leader of the Opposition would be more truthful about these things. I would certainly hope that, when he had to appear as a witness at the Labor criminal conspiracy trial, he was more truthful there.

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

The Leader of the Opposition is seeking to table a document?

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Yes, Mr Speaker. The evidence of Mr Boyd from the ANAO to the Senate in which he said, 'These are the ones'—

Leave not granted.

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

I was just about to say, I wasn't even going to ask the Leader of the House for leave, because, if we get to the point where we're tabling our own Hansard, I think—

An opposition member interjecting—

Yes, well—

Joel Fitzgibbon (Hunter, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Agriculture and Resources) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Don't say it, Mr Speaker!

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

Same as the Senate. Yes, you know my soft spot. But, no.