Senator CONROY (Victoria—Leader of the Government in the Senate, Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy and Minister Assisting the Prime Minister on Digital Productivity) (14:00): Has anyone ever heard of Australian Water Holdings? Put your hand up. As I have repeatedly said, I am such a close friend of Mr Eddie Obeid that he could not even remember my name yesterday. He actually could not remember my name. Opposition senators interjecting— Senator CONROY: I am so close to Mr Obeid that he actually got my name wrong. He named somebody else. He might know another senator's name but let us be very clear— Honourable senators interjecting— The PRESIDENT: Order! Wait a minute, Senator Brandis. You will get the call; you are entitled to be heard in silence, that is why I am not giving you the call yet. Senator Brandis: Mr President, on a point of order, I know that Senator Conroy seeks to make light of this matter but it is a serious question. It goes to the integrity of his declarations and his public statements. I ask you on this particular occasion, given its sensitivity, to be very strict in your enforcement of the direct relevance requirement. Senator Jacinta Collins: Mr President, on the point of order: Senator Conroy is being quite serious in his response. He has been asked to explain the consistency between two matters and he is addressing precisely that point. The PRESIDENT: There is no point of order. Senator Conroy, you have one minute and 17 seconds to continue. Senator CONROY: Thank you, Mr President. I am so implicated! It did not take long after those opposite announced, 'We're going to be positive. We're going to go on policies'—it was less than a week—for them to start the smear jobs again. Senator Heffernan: I want to see if your brain— Senator CONROY: Your brain has never been turned on, Senator Heffernan, so you might have to wait a bit. Opposition senators interjecting— Senator CONROY: Obviously, you failed to hear the interjection. I apologise, Mr President. The PRESIDENT: You withdraw. Senator CONROY: I apologise, Mr President. Those opposite have spent less than a week on their positive campaign and they want to do any smear. It does not matter how tenuous; it does not matter how thin; it does not matter how outrageous or unseemly. They are prepared to get down in the gutter at every stage. Senator Brandis: Mr President, I have a point of order on direct relevance. Since you overruled the last point of order, the minister has done nothing but attack the opposition. Nothing but attack the opposition. Nothing he said is directly or indirectly relevant to the question. He was merely asked, not in a belligerent way, to reconcile two apparently inconsistent statements. He has not addressed that issue, I would submit with respect, at all. But he certainly has not addressed it since you overruled the last point of order. The PRESIDENT: Order! I draw the minister's attention to the question. Senator CONROY: As I said, they are down in the gutter immediately. I reject the premise of the question.