Page 288 - Week 01 - Thursday, 16 February 2012
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The spotlight is well and truly on the management and the administration of the Liberal Party. One of the best forms of defence is attack. So what we are seeing here is people over there saying, “Aha, let us seize upon that.” Mr Smyth, the ultimate wordsmith—and he is the best on that side of the house for creating a straw man and then tearing it down—comes in here and talks about a pattern of behaviour.
I ask members to reflect on the pattern of behaviour from those opposite, particularly the pattern of behaviour around question time, particularly the pattern of behaviour from those from the absolute backbench of the Liberal Party and their throwing of personal insults my way, designed to put me off, get me upset, all that sort of stuff. I wish they would give it up because it does not work. But you do get a bit sick of it every now and again, and I have had cause in the past to ask for those people to just think about it and to desist.
They throw up this business about Mrs Dunne. I came in here and apologised to Mrs Dunne quite sincerely for what I considered to be a stupid slip on my part. I apologised. I not only did that, I rang her on the weekend to personally make sure that apology was in and make sure that she understood that it was sincere. I asked her what else I could do. I volunteered to come into this house and make that apology.
The Leader of the Opposition, grumbling away, just below the line, with that smirk on his face, does himself no credit in besmirching this point that I am trying to make. I do not deliberately get up in the morning and say, “Which one of those opposition people am I going to personally offend today?” But I suggest to you, Mr Speaker, some of those people might just do that. They might just get up in the morning and say, “Which one of these people am I going to try to take out today?” And we have seen it happen. We have seen the themes.
They do not attack us on policy. They attack us personally. The Labor Party has, across Australia, some sort of reputation for being able to hate. I do not think we hold a candle to those people opposite. They actually take something particularly personal and let go.
What I am expecting to ensue from this is that the Leader of the Opposition will have a spray, Mrs Dunne will have a spray, Mr Hanson will have a spray and possibly the other two, but I do not really think they are up to it. I think what we will see is those four actually coming out and repeating exactly the same outrage, the confected outrage that they have. They do not realise—if they go back to their own Hansard, they will see that they are greater sinners than I have been in this place.
If I have a difference in my personal view out there in my community than the government, I am allowed to express it. The government indeed is allowed, in fact has an obligation if it believes that it wants to take a different position vis-a-vis the community, to take that track. And I will support the government whether I like it or not. But I do not have to necessarily hide my feelings just because I am supporting someone. I never have and I never will.
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