Sussan Ley (Farrer, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Women) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. Under this economically illiterate Prime Minister, families and small businesses are hurting.

Hon. Members:

Honourable members interjecting—

Milton Dick (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I want to hear from the Leader of the House, but I do want to deal with this, following on from a couple of weeks ago.

Mr Tony Burke (Watson, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, you made a ruling in response to the Manager of Opposition Business a few weeks ago. That ruling was made at the request of the opposition. You also indicated that if we had questions like this, we'd start looking at just simply going to the next question.

Milton Dick (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On 30 May at 2.19 pm, the Manager of Opposition Business asked me to direct the Treasurer to cease his repeated practice of undignified personal attacks. That was raised by the manager, and I agreed with him at the time that personal reflection on other members shall be considered highly disorderly. In light of that, we're going to continue with the practice from 30 May to ensure that those sorts of remarks aren't made. Out of respect for the Deputy Leader of the Opposition, I will ask her to begin her question again without that remark and make sure that she's complying with practice and standing orders.

Sussan Ley (Farrer, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Women) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. Under this Prime Minister, families and small businesses are hurting, with core inflation having now increased for four consecutive months to 4.4 per cent. As the Reserve Bank Governor said last week, 'groceries, petrol, health, education, rents, insurance, expenses are all going up.' Isn't this another example of this Prime Minister's weak leadership letting Australians down?

Milton Dick (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The question is in order. The Minister for Resources will cease interjecting. The Prime Minister has the call and is now going to be heard in silence.

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

That question and the reframing of it says more about the Deputy Leader of the Opposition and her character than anything else. Just like we saw on the weekend, the Leader of the Opposition go from a so-called policy announcement—that we know now was actually a mistake that led to them change their position—into a full-scale personal attack.

Hon. Members:

Honourable members interjecting—

Milton Dick (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! We're going to do this in an orderly manner. We don't need comments continually at the Chair. The House comes to order and then we'll hear from the Manager of Opposition Business on a point of order.

Paul Fletcher (Bradfield, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Government Services and the Digital Economy) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On relevance. It was a very tight question about inflation and the Prime Minister's leadership, and the Prime Minister does not have licence to engage in a wideranging trawl over other matters. He should be directed back to the question.

Mr Tony Burke (Watson, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, I refer you to the multiple rulings by Speaker Smith, where he made clear that if he was letting a question through that was borderline in any way that the rules of relevance were wide open. That ruling was made repeatedly by Tony Smith when he was in the Speaker's chair. This question is exactly in line with all of those precedents.

Milton Dick (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I have a series of precedents and decisions by former speakers here. The issue I have with this question is that it wasn't a tight question. It was a very broad question revolving around a whole range of issues regarding the Prime Minister's leadership. If you're going to ask a broad question about someone's leadership and the decisions that they make, and you frame in with a range of topics, of course the Prime Minister is going to be pretty broad in their answer. This is not a question that we've had before about a fact, or a figure, or a yes, or a no. It was a broad statement raising a number of issues. So if we're going to have these types of questions—just as has happened in previous parliaments, including the immediate parliament before this one, where I was a member—you're going to have a very broad answer. The Prime Minister has the call.

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you, Mr Speaker. I'm asked a question about leadership and I'm happy to answer a question about leadership. We know that, for the Leader of the Opposition, any endorsement is the kiss of death. In the pre-selection for the Queensland LNP Senate ticket, he endorsed sitting senator, Gerard Rennick. He wrote a letter of support asking people 'to support Gerard as part of my team'. Rennick is now suing the LNP and Peter Dutton, claiming the party is run in an unprofessional manner.

Milton Dick (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Prime Minister will use correct terms.

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

 He did better. In a three-man race to replace Marise Payne, he backed two of the three horses. They were Zed Seselja and Andrew Constance—not one but two. He put written endorsements in for Zed: 'I have no doubt that if he is re-elected to parliament, Zed will again play a senior role within the coalition.' For Andrew Constance, he said, 'Having been a senior cabinet minister, Andrew has a wealth of policymaking experience.' Well, guess what? He backed two horses in a three-horse race, and the third horse won. The third horse won with Dave Sharma. Then he endorsed Hollie Hughes, but the shadow Treasurer had something else in mind. The shadow Treasurer was out there, helping to knock off one of his own cabinet—

Milton Dick (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Prime Minister will pause. The member for Deakin will cease interjecting. The member for Barker will cease interjecting. The member for Hume, if you keep going, I won't hear from the Leader of the Opposition. The Leader of the Opposition, on a point of order.

Peter Dutton (Dickson, Liberal Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It's on relevance. Australians really are hurting under this government at the moment, and we're talking about—

Milton Dick (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Resume your seat. We've had a point of order on relevance already. Before the Prime Minister continues, can everyone take their seats. That will help.

One point of order under the standing orders is able to be taken under 'relevance'. Because of the Leader of the Opposition's position, he's always given the call for a point of order. So that point of order has been taken. We've got 23 seconds to go. I will ask the Prime Minister to return to the question so we can move forward through the rest of question time.

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I was talking about leadership. Hollie Hughes: oblivion. Anne Ruston: knocked off the top of the ticket by Alex Antic, even though she's a senior shadow minister. And, of course, there's the member for Moore up there, who also got his endorsement and lost a ballot 137 to 39.