Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for the Murray Darling Basin) Share this | Hansard source

indeed, perhaps he could ask Senator Wong. I think Senator Joyce would differ in your suggestion that Senator Wong would necessarily give answers to questions on government debt. She may give more informative or entertaining responses, Minister, than when you open up the laptop in question time, but I doubt that we would get greater fact in the answers than you provide. But the fact that these amendments specifically enhance the role of the finance minister in making decisions around the operation of the NBN and NBN corporations and put the finance minister, as the equal shareholder, on an equal footing with the communications minister does make sense. It particularly makes sense given the enormous levels of debt that this project involves and the role that the finance minister will have in helping to raise that debt and managing that debt in years to come.