Glenn Sterle (WA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to Senator Abetz, the Minister representing the Prime Minster. I refer to the embarrassing and damaging leak of Monday night's cabinet agenda to Seven News. Can the minister confirm that the Prime Minister threatened to punish cabinet leakers and that the response, as Seven's Mark Riley said, was to immediately leak the cabinet agenda?

Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Employment) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I suspect that the workings of cabinet will be something that Senator Sterle will never experience, either shadow or government. I indicate to the honourable senator that, of course, we will not be commenting on matters that may or may not occur in cabinet. I do note that, when Senator Sterle sat on this side of the chamber, the cabinet basically could have been put into a little motor vehicle with two in the front and two in the back. It was a cabinet of four, and all the other cabinet ministers used to comment and leak about that fact, saying that they had been cut out of the equation and were not part of the decision making.

Stephen Parry (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Pause the clock.

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

I rise on a point of order on relevance. The question was very succinct. I ask you to draw the minister's attention to the question, rather than him attacking individuals who are asking questions, when the people he really wants to attack are sitting behind him.

Stephen Parry (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

There is no point of order, Senator Conroy. The minister has addressed the heart of the question directly. Minister.

Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Employment) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The responsibility of a cabinet is to provide good government to this country, and that is what we are seeking to do by getting on with the business of creating jobs. We have created 336,000 jobs, four times the rate of job creation in the last year of the Labor government. We are growing our economy and jobs in Australia at a faster rate than the United States, the United Kingdom, the G7 and New Zealand. Having said that, we do need to do more. We will not rest on our laurels, but, rather than dealing in the gossip columns of newspapers, as Senator Sterle and his colleague do, we actually get on with the business of government, creating a future for northern Australia, creating a dynamic future for the agricultural sector, ensuring that our renewable energy target and our commitments internationally are world leading yet economically responsible. They are the matters that we devote ourselves to, unlike those on the other side.

Glenn Sterle (WA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask a supplementary question. Can the minister further confirm that cabinet briefing notes about how to deal with cabinet leaks were leaked this morning? Is this the behaviour the minister had in mind when he described his cabinet colleagues as 'gutless'?

Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Employment) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Sterle has fallen into the trap, and, regrettably, taken the lead from Senator Cameron and others, to misquote. All I said—and I have the transcript right in front of me—was:

I'm not one of those people that has unattributed comments in the media.

Anybody that has unattributed comments to them in the media—and indeed we recall them by the bucket loads under Mr Rudd's Prime Ministership, we remember them against Ms Gillard from people who are interjecting as I speak because they are reminded of the way they background briefed against Ms Gillard and undoubtedly are reminded of their dastardly attacks from their own Prime Minister. (Time expired)

Honourable Senators:

Honourable senators interjecting—

Stephen Parry (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On my left and on my right. We do not need dialogue across the chamber. Order!

Glenn Sterle (WA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask a further supplementary question. What did the Prime Minister mean when he said at the party room meeting that ministers better not go off script on issues like same-sex marriage or there will be consequences? Are direct threats the only way this Prime Minister can keep his frontbench in line?

Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Employment) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

They are, once again, trawling through the gossip columns of the newspapers and referring to unattributed comments. That is what excites Senator Sterle and that is what excites Senator Wong. That is what excites the Labor Party. Do you know what excites us? What excites us are the 336,000 new jobs since we got into government; a plan for the expansion of our agriculture sector; a plan for northern Australia; and a plan to ensure that we can stand within the world community, providing a 50 per cent per capita reduction in our CO2 emissions without destroying jobs and our economy. They are the things that motivate us. That is what excites me and, I must say, makes me very thankful that I am privileged to be part of a coalition government dedicated to the service of the people of Australia, rather than dealing in innuendo and gossip columns, which are of no benefit to the people of Australia.