Question time in federal parliament

WHAT WE LEARNED

* The government is talking to the states and territories about the development of a national approach to redress for victims of institutional child sexual abuse. But it won't be supporting a single national redress scheme.

* Issues surrounding the so-called backpacker tax are being examined by the treasurer, following concerns raised by farmers and Nationals MPs. But they shouldn't hold their breath. Scott Morrison told MPs what was being asked amounted to a a taxpayer-funded incentive to employ foreign workers for particular industries.

* Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull expressed confidence in all his ministers but, in answer to a Labor question, declined to say the same thing about former members of cabinet's national security committee. Take that as a reference to former PM Tony Abbott and dumped defence minister Kevin Andrews.

* A police task force put in place to deal with union corruption allegations arising from the royal commission has so far brought 11 people before the courts.

WHAT THE GOVERNMENT WANTED TO SPIN

How it's transitioning the economy from one which relied on the mining boom to one which offers our children and grandchildren the greatest opportunities imaginable.

WHAT LABOR WANTED TO TALK ABOUT

The treasurer's reliance on a discredited analysis that suggests all sorts of horrible things will happen if tax breaks for property investors - aka negative gearing - are limited to newly-constructed homes, as proposed by Labor.

YOU SAID WHAT?

"This one is truly Zoolander economics," Deputy PM Barnaby Joyce said of a Labor plan to limit negative gearing on share investments to other investment income only.

TWEETED

"Behold Barnaby - the man who moves commodity prices through the power of his mangled rhetoric alone," Labor MP Tim Watts after the agriculture minister answered a question on his favourite topic.