Question Time: Scott Morrison says views ‘do not align’ with Craig Kelly

Labor has unleashed on Craig Kelly in Question Time, but one question from the embattled Liberal made the parliament erupt with laughter.

Labor has unleashed on Coalition MP Craig Kelly in Question Time, but one comment from the embattled Liberal made the parliament erupt with laughter.

Mr Kelly was hauled into the prime minister’s office on Tuesday and told to refrain from spreading coronavirus conspiracy theories on social media that fly in the face of government medical advice.

The dressing down came after Mr Kelly and Labor MP Tanya Plibersek had a public confrontation over the spread of misinformation in a parliamentary corridor.

The opposition seized on the drama in the House of Representatives, with leader Anthony Albanese saying “comments from the Member for Hughes have been dangerous”.

This prompted Mr Kelly to yell out “which one?”, causing the chamber to erupt with laughter.

Scott Morrison publicly distanced himself from Mr Kelly, telling the parliament a key principle of the government’s successful response to the pandemic had been “respect for the expert advice”.

“It is true that the views expressed by the Member for Hughes do not align with my views or the views of the advice that has been provided to me by the chief medical officer,” he said.

“Vaccination is critical.”

Craig Kelly was at the centre of heated debate during Question Time on Wednesday. Picture: NCA NewsWire/Gary Ramage

Mr Kelly also tabled a statement confirming he agreed to “support the government’s vaccine rollout”.

“I believe that the spread of misinformation can damage the success of our public health response during the pandemic,” the statement read.

Mr Albanese welcomed the “belated statement” from the prime minister.

The opposition unleashed Mr Kelly during Question Time, dredging up his social media posts about the US Capitol riots.

Labor MPs Josh Burns and Mark Dreyfus grilled the government about Mr Kelly’s role as chair of the Joint Committee for Law Enforcement, after he was “trivialising of the attack on the US Capitol by domestic terrorists”.

“How can the Prime Minister maintain the Member for Hughes is doing a good job when – as chair of this Parliament’s Committee on Law Enforcement – he backed domestic terrorists who attacked the US Capitol, killed and injured police officers and menaced members of Congress?” Mr Dreyfus said.

The question prompted an outburst from Mr Kelly, who yelled “rubbish”, while a threat of defamation flew across the chamber before the ruckus was shut down by Speaker Tony Smith.

RELATED: Labor slams Kelly for spreading coronavirus misinformation

Anthony Albanese said responsible leadership was needed from every parliamentarian. Picture: NCA NewsWire/Gary Ramage

Mr Morrison used the start of Question Time to praise the hundreds of firefighters responding to blazes in Perth’s northeast.

“The thoughts of all in this House are with the people of Western Australia and especially with the firefighters who are working around the clock,” Mr Morrison told the parliament.

“I can report that the Australian Government’s Disaster Response Plan has been activated, which means the Commonwealth has all of its resources ready to assist upon request of the WA Government.”

From 8am on Thursday, eligible West Australians will be able to receive an immediate cash payment of $1000 for adults and $400 for children through Services Australia.

Mr Morrison, Nationals leader Michael McCormack and Mr Albanese also gave touching tributes to Australia’s longest-serving deputy prime minister, Doug Anthony, who died on December 18.

His son and former community services minister, Larry Anthony, was in the public gallery for the speeches.