Mr Tony Burke (Watson, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Finance) Share this | Hansard source

Thanks very much, Deputy Speaker. Threatened as we feel from the Leader of the House, threatening as he can be, he knows full well that a suppression of debate is exactly what they were pressuring the chair to do. The reason we have to move dissent is that the action taken by the chair was to prevent members from this side speaking. The action taken by the chair was to prevent there being a debate within this parliament. If those opposite think they can now try to prevent us from being up front and that that debate was whether or not Labor would stand in the way of pension cuts, well, you have another think coming. If those opposite think that we will somehow be silenced through their little procedural games and not defend Australia's pensioners, well, they have another think coming.

This entire game from those opposite is because they wanted to change the debate. They wanted to change the bill and did not want it to be honestly referred to within this House. And then, when I sought the call to raise these issues, those opposite immediately started to take points of order. Unfortunately, the Deputy Speaker ended up agreeing with them and making a ruling which had one impact. The impact was to say that this is a chamber where, according to those in government, only members of the Liberal and National parties need be heard. The ruling was that those who are standing in defence of pensioners will be silenced. The ruling was—in a complete abuse of the standing orders by the Deputy Speaker—that this government wants to get away with covering up what it is doing to Australia's pensioners.

Mr Pyne interjecting—

Don't you love the claims from the Leader of the House, who just took a point of order that he used as a speech? He just took a point of order that he used as a speech and now wants to say, 'Oh, but you're abusing standing orders.' The most extraordinary abuses of standing orders happen every day by the man sitting at the table opposite—every day in the way he behaves.

And unfortunately, Deputy Speaker, today you fell for it. Unfortunately, Deputy Speaker, you allowed the pressure that was brought on you by a member of your political party to affect how you handled yourself in that chair. Unfortunately, Deputy Speaker, it took until the very end of the entire objection back-and-forth before it occurred to you that you should seek advice from the clerks. I have to say: therein lies the problem. And, once you sought advice from the clerks, that was the first time you recognised that we had the right to move this motion, and we had the right to stand up for Australia's pensioners within this parliament.

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