As a Liberal of course I am very strongly committed to the notion of artistic freedom and very hostile to the idea of there being a single view of cultural policy dictated from on high.

One of the things about federal politics is that it has been remarkably free of corruption.

I joined the Young Liberals when I was 16 and it was a good way for me to understand how the Liberal Party worked and to learn basic political skills and techniques.

The arts are part of a nation's identity, they are part of a nation's soul and when we look at a country from the eyes of people overseas they are part of a nations branding in the world as it were.

The tyranny of distance is such an important element of policy and the allocation of resources.

It is a necessary precondition for the success of a referendum that there should be broad community consensus and bipartisan support for it.

The crime of bribery of foreign officials is an offence under the Commonwealth Criminal Code.

I don't really know a lot about these 'anti-protest' laws. I'm only vaguely aware of them, but I don't have enough detailed knowledge about them to comment.

I was President of the Queensland Young Liberals in 1981.

I was interested in politics since the age of 14.

There have been 44 constitutional referenda in Australia and only eight have succeeded.

I've swallowed fish-eyes wholelike an endoscope.I once ate a trout cooked inside a dolphin. Felt like a shark eating another shark, inside the cold-blooded womb of yet another shark.

Golf is a thinking man's game. You can have all the shots in the bag, but if you don't know what to do with them, you've got troubles.

When I meet people from other cultures I know that they too want happiness and do not want suffering, this allows me to see them as brothers and sisters.

Zen is the path that focuses the most upon meditation. It is almost exclusively a path of meditation.

It is only when we are by ourselves that we can know others. When we are with other human beings we are distracted. People try and dream us into their dreams.

I really wanted the house to be a character. And I knew, I said, I'll produce that one, but if I direct it, I need to build a house.

If people offer me decent roles in good films, of course I'll take it. But I just didn't like the actor lifestyle. You end up focusing all your energy on trying to get parts you don't even want.

I do some solo, acoustic stuff, but I also like plugging in my electric guitar and playing loud with a band.

Chess is a cure for headaches.

Heaven is living in your hopes and Hell is living in your fears. It's up to each individual which one he chooses.