I think it displayed what the Australia Council does so well, the awarding of artists who at various steps in their career had been encouraged by the Australia Council.

The thing about Dickens is you either love him or you hate him and I fell in love with Dickens, I fell in love with his prose style and I decided that I wanted to read the whole Dickens verve during the course of my life.

I think there has only ever been one member of the Federal Parliament from either side found to have been corrupt in the whole history of Australia. I don't think we should create the architecture to solve a problem which barely exists.

I am because the Chinese have agreed - entered into this agreement in 1997. It sets out the circumstances in which the release of a prisoner who is the subject of a transfer may occur in exceptional circumstances. So the Chinese, having agreed to those principles, I'm sure have no objection to them being applied in this particular case.

Historically, it's very unusual after a change of government for the new government not to be returned.

One of the senior Labor frontbenchers from Queensland, Terri Butler, said that she was against the Adani mine. So that is the clearest statement we've had from a person who would be a member of a Shorten government, that if there were to be a Shorten government as far as she's concerned, the Adani mine wouldn't go ahead. People in Rockhampton know that and they're very worried about it.

I am the enemy of anything parochial.