End of the day for me. What happened?
- outgoing Australia Post boss Ahmed Fahour feels "sorry" for Pauline Hanson;
- Mr Fahour made the comments at a Senate committee hearing that was supposed to be about his salary but turned into more:
- question time was - again - dominated by penalty rates;
- National Party MP George Christensen has stepped down as whip because he is too "outspoken";
- Attorney-General George Brandis faces more questions about his role in the Bell litigation matter; and
- Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull announced a NSW man has been arrested on suspicion of trying to help foreign terrorists.
My thanks, as always, to Andrew Meares and Alex Ellinghausen for their superb work and to you for reading and commenting.
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Andrew, Alex and I will be back in the morning. We hope to see you then. Good evening.
Georgina Mitchell has more on this story here.
Mr Turnbull and Mr Keenan are asked if any of the Coalition's counter terrorism laws made this arrest possible.
They demur but say the penalties will be tougher.
Commissioner Colvin says an 18 month investigation led to the arrest.
The man is facing a life in prison, he says.
"We are not alleging this man was involved in any domestic attack planning."
Mr Turnbull invites Mr Keenan to tell people what the Coalition is doing about terrorism.
Mr Keenan outlines the various packages of counter terrorism legislation and how much money is being spent on the issue.
Back to top"It seems almost daily that we see around the world the threat of terrorism," Mr Turnbull says.
"We will continue to defy these terrorists."
"Just as we should defy the terrorists by going about our lives in a normal way we should be alert."
"If we see something that is concerning....call the national terrorism hotline. Speak up."
Mr Turnbull says there is no evidence that the man was planning any domestic attack.
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, Justice Minister Michael Keenan and Australian Federal Police Commissioner Andrew Colvin are at the press conference.
Mr Turnbull says a 42 year old man was arrested in Young earlier today on suspicion of advising ISIL on how to develop weapons' capability.
"Once again it shows that we all need to be very vigilant," Mr Turnbull says.
A tiny bit of detail from Justice Minister Michael Keenan:
The AFP has arrested a man in NSW in relation to alleged terrorism offences. More details soon. #auspol @AFPmedia
— Michael Keenan MP (@MichaelKeenanMP) February 28, 2017
It's turning into one of those days.
Mr Fahour has moved onto the intricacies of parcel delivery.
But in about ten minutes there is going to be a press conference about a counter terrorism operation now underway in the NSW town of Young. I will bring that to you as soon as it begins.
Back to topMr Fahour is probably happy to go back to discussing his salary.
He says he will not receive any payment when he leaves: "There's no golden handshake, there's no watch. I'm hoping to get a stamp though."
LOL.
Despite running hard on the issue of Mr Fahour's salary, there is not a single One Nation senator on this committee.
This is extraordinary. The head of a major company has, basically, been forced to say he is a law abiding citizen committed to his country even though he wasn't born in Australia.
Thanks for that contribution to public life One Nation.
Mr Fahour is asked what he is going to do next.
"I just want to get on a plane and go home," he says.
Mr Fahour, who is Muslim and was born in Lebanon, says it is with a "heavy heart" that he heard Senator Hanson's comments.
He says he's been coming to Parliament House for seven years and he knows everyone is "decent and caring".
Mr Fahour says his family did come to Australia as migrants and that English was not his first langauge.
"We came here legitimately," Mr Fahour says. "We assimilated and we love being in this country."
"The law in this country is the most important thing to me."
Back to topThe question is allowed.
"This is obviously a very difficult conversation Senator," Mr Fahour begins.
"I felt really sad for the senator that she would descend to that level of commentary. I felt that it was very ill-informed. I also felt that it was very hurtful to my wife who's English-Irish and went to a Catholic school and my four beautiful children."
"We love our country. I love my country so much. So I feel sorry for Senator Hanson."
Senator Di Natale asks Mr Fahour if he thinks his faith or ethnic background "has played a role" in discussions about his salary.
Committee chair Linda Reynolds intervenes saying she wants more advice about whether this is "appropriate questioning".
The committee takes a short break.
Mr Stanhope said a phone call between himself and Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull about the salary was brief.
"He phoned me and said to me, I think the CEO's salary is too high. I said to him, I note your concern."
Nobody mentioned Senator Hanson's call for the board to resign over the matter.
Greens leader Richard Di Natale sees the dilemma of Australia Post.
He wonders if the government could do anything in relation to private sector pay to "level the playing field".
Liberal senator Jane Hume doesn't have a problem with Mr Fahour's salary: "Good on you."
Mr Stanhope says there might be a problem down the road with the Remuneration Tribunal setting the pay for the head of Australia Post because it might make attracting executive talent difficult.
"We'll have to try to find the talent we need to take the CEO role," Mr Stanhope says.
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