Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition in the Senate) Share this | Hansard source

I actually think that the Prime Minister might have used the phrase 'frontbencher'. So let's keep it in perspective: when you say he came back, he was given the same position as Senator Williams, who has made some pretty strong comments over the years about banking royal commissions and, more recently, Mr Turnbull's leadership; and Senator Fawcett, who hasn't made such comments—he is a much more disciplined operator. I want to remind people that the position Senator Dastyari holds is that of deputy whip; it is an organisational position.

Finally, I make this point—and I don't wish to discuss this much publicly: it does appear from media reports that national security information, or information from national security agencies, has made its way into the public arena. I would trust, given the history of such matters and given the legislative framework applying to such matters, that Senator Brandis, as the Attorney-General, will be as persistent and determined in finding out how that has occurred as he has been to point the finger at Senator Dastyari.