Stephen Conroy (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Leader of the Opposition in the Senate) Share this | Hansard source

It was so rushed, Senator Macdonald. It could be that it was the department we were asking. I thought it was both, but I accept that it may have been just the department. I have to say that I am a bit more concerned about it. I am sure that if News Ltd get theirs in at nine o’clock and are knocked back on the basis that two others were received by hand at nine o’clock across the counter by the person to whom they have to be submitted, News Ltd are going to take it very seriously. I would imagine that you would be in court on the definition. We have set up a process. If billions of dollars of merger activity is going to be based on literally the flip of a coin, I would imagine that News Ltd or any of the other major media players would be absolutely wanting to enforce the letter of the law. I am conscious of making sure that we have a process that will actually stand up in a court—not just because the minister says, ‘I didn’t think it was going to happen,’ and then suddenly, bang: three applications turn up in the morning.