Tim Ayres (NSW, Australian Labor Party, Assistant Minister for Trade) Share this | Hansard source

I am doing my best. What is being propagated is so damaging to Australia, to our democratic institutions, to the health of our public debate and to public health itself, and it is exactly the kind of conspiracy theory ideology that is used to promote violence and threats online. The kind of swamp online that these theories come from is exactly the swamp that these kinds of characters play in, and it should not be tolerated by a party that says that it hopes to form government one day.

It should not be tolerated, but it is. It is tolerated. It is encouraged. It is acquiesced to. It is becoming a stronger and stronger strain of thinking amongst some of these characters in the Liberal and National parties, some of whom are on what appears to be their own path to radicalisation. So I just think it has got to be called out every single time it happens, and I will continue to call it out because it's bad for Australia, damaging to our democracy and beneath contempt, in my view.

Question agreed to.