“What is an audit?” Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull asked reporters in Israel on Tuesday.
“Does that mean that somebody is going to undertake extensive genealogical research on every member of parliament and senator? Undertake extensive research into foreign laws?”
There has never been an audit of Australia's politicians to discover potential dual citizens. But, the calls continue to grow.
Are any politicians actually asking for it?
There are currently 149 MPs (not including Barnaby Joyce) in the Lower House of Parliament and 70 Senators (five have left because of their dual citizenships).
The strongest calls for an audit or inquiry into the citizenship of all of the remaining politicians are coming from the Greens and crossbenchers in the Senate.
The Greens are asking for Parliament to support an audit, possibly through the Independent Parliamentary Expenses Authority or an independent judge.
“After an audit, what we'd end up with is question marks, I suspect, over a handful of MPs,” Greens Leader Richard Di Natale said.
“There are MPs at the moment who have not demonstrated they're not dual citizens. We know some of them are eligible for dual citizenship and they haven't provided proof they've renounced that dual citizenship.”
Crossbench senators like Cory Bernardi and Derryn Hinch are also pushing for an audit.
Embarrassingly for both major parties, Labor MP Meryl Swanson and Liberals Craig Kelly and Eric Abetz have also joined the calls for an audit.
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Is it going to happen?
Not unless the Liberals and Labor change their mind. Both parties argue it comes down to politicians to check their own eligibility.
“The fact is every member and every senator has a personal responsibility and an obligation to comply with the constitution,” Prime Minister Turnbull said.
“I expect every member and senator to take their obligation very seriously and, if they feel they're not in compliance with the constitution, to say so.”
But it's not just the Prime Minister who is thoroughly rejecting the idea.
"The idea that somehow we need to set up 'The Office of the Public Genealogist' I think is getting a bit ridiculous," Treasurer Scott Morrison said.
"Stephen Parry has resigned from the Senate and he self-identified and he has come forward and he has dealt with it. So, move on."
Labor, which is yet to lose any of its members to the citizenship scandal, maintained its vetting processes are solid.
"I've been through those processes, every candidate has been through those processes, and we are confident we have no dual citizens," Malaysian-born Labor Senator Penny Wong said.
“We have got strict processes and careful procedures when people are applying to be candidates.” Acting Opposition Leader Tanya Plibersek said.
"We're very confident no Labor MP is a dual citizen."
Can an audit happen without a vote in Parliament?
Possibly. The Greens believe there could be an audit by agreement of the major parties rather than through a formal vote.
“As long as the process is independent of Parliament, as long as it’s got the confidence of the Parliament, that's all that needs to be done.”
But, again, the Coalition argues that authority rests with a higher power.
“The only body that can declare somebody disqualified from the Parliament … is the High Court of Australia and, of course, ultimately it's the only body that can resolve disputes about it,” Prime Minister Turnbull said.
The Immigration Minister argues the media scrutiny acts as quasi-audit.
“I think now it'll be a case people really dig deeper into their backgrounds and make sure they're complying with Australian law,” he told Channel Seven.
Are there any more dual citizens in Parliament?
The Coalition and Labor are confident we won’t see any more dual citizen politicians. But, these predictions have happened before.
In fact, two days before Stephen Parry caused headaches for the Liberals, the Attorney-General said he had no reason to believe there were any more potential dual citizens on Capital Hill.
