Senator WATT (Queensland) (15:13): I'm pleased to have the opportunity to follow the Attorney-General, Senator Brandis. I will direct a number of my remarks to the incredible double standards he is displaying in his response to the situation that now confronts the Deputy Prime Minister. Both yesterday in question time and today again, we have seen an extraordinary position taken by Senator Brandis, the first law officer of this country, who you would think would go out of his way to ensure that the law of this country and our Constitution was upheld. Instead, he is doing his usual twisting and turning—evasion—to try to preserve whatever remains of his government's political honour. I had a look back at some of the comments that Senator Brandis made in question time yesterday, which he went on to repeat today. In answer to Senator Cameron's question about what the difference was between the situation Senator Canavan found himself in before—properly—standing aside and the one the Deputy Prime Minister now faces, Senator Brandis said: There are obvious factual and legal differences between the two cases. He didn't want to comment about what they were. He said: Suffice it to say that, when acquainted with the situation on 25 July and on the basis of his understanding of the facts at that time, Senator Canavan decided that he would prefer to stand down. The facts of Mr Joyce's case are much clearer to us than were the facts as known to Senator Canavan at the time he made his decision. I was shocked when I heard Senator Brandis make those comments. In essence, his argument was and seems to remain, based on his comments today, that in Senator Canavan's case the facts and the situation were unclear and, therefore, the right thing for him to do was to stand down from his ministry, while in the Deputy Prime Minister's case the facts are very clear—that he is a dual citizen, that he is a citizen of New Zealand—but for some reason he should remain in office as Deputy Prime Minister of this country. Surely, if anything, it would be exactly the opposite. Surely, if anything, if a minister's situation is crystal clear, as is the case with the Deputy Prime Minister, that minister should be standing down immediately. It should be the minister whose situation is unclear who might just have an argument that he should remain in his position while the situation is clarified by the court. But instead we have the first law officer of this country getting up and trying to argue exactly the opposite. All I can hope— Senator Brandis: Because the facts clearly establish that. Senator WATT: I will take Senator Brandis's interjection. He's maintaining this argument that the facts are clear, in the Deputy Prime Minister's case, that he is a New Zealander. He is 100 per cent New Zealand, and yet he can continue to serve in this government. The fact that the Deputy Prime Minister remains in office, and the fact that we have the Attorney-General and every other minister defending the right of the Deputy Prime Minister to remain in that position, not only shows the great illegitimacy in their government but also shows exactly how beholden the Liberal Party and the Prime Minister are to the National Party to remain in office. Senator Brandis's other comments yesterday, in answer to a question from Senator Wong, were even more absurd. Senator Wong asked Senator Brandis: Can the minister advise the Senate which of these 'factual and legal differences' requires one minister to stand aside but permits another to continue? Senator Brandis responded: With respect, Senator Wong, it's not which factual and legal differences that is the point. The point is that there are factual and legal differences … This is absurd. He is smiling. Even Senator Brandis acknowledges the humour in the remarks that he's making by smiling about the comments he's made. Senator Brandis: Point of order, Deputy President. The DEPUTY PRESIDENT: Thank you— Senator Brandis interjecting— The DEPUTY PRESIDENT: Senator Brandis, please wait for the call. And that is not a point of order. Senator Brandis: May I have the call? The DEPUTY PRESIDENT: Yes. Senator Brandis: I was laughing at Senator Watt's stupidity. The DEPUTY PRESIDENT: That is not a point of order. Senator WATT: Oh, Senator Brandis, it's always good to be in the chamber with you. All I can say is that I really hope that Senator Canavan and Mr Joyce have both made sure they have better counsel who can make better arguments before the High Court than the arguments that Senator Brandis has put forward today. I would be happy to put around the can and take up a bit of a collection to make sure they can get themselves better lawyers and better counsel than Senator Brandis, should he be intending to appear for them. And today we've had it go even further. I thought that Julie Bishop, the foreign minister, was having a bad day today already, but her day got a lot worse when she turned to her robust ally Senator Brandis to defend her position. You know as a minister you are in deep, deep, deep trouble when it's Senator Brandis who has to come out here and defend your position, and that's what we saw from Senator Brandis today. I'm waiting for Senator Brandis to declare war on New Zealand. This ridiculous rhetoric that is coming out of his mouth, and every other minister's mouth, should stop immediately.