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

This parliament has never debated this bill. This parliament was elected in a double dissolution where this bill was one of the triggers. As to the whole concept of what issues members of parliament should be allowed to talk on, there are in fact no pieces of legislation where members of parliament should have a stronger argument that they are allowed to make their case and should not be inhibited by a gag motion or a debate management motion than the triggers for a double-D. That is exactly what is happening here.

Sometimes when we get these debate management motions, you get the government saying that they will cut off debate at a certain time of day. When they do that, at least parties on each side can organise that, if they want people to go for briefer times, they can share speaking times and try to make sure that people get as much of a chance as possible. What the Leader of the House is doing instead is saying, 'No; not one new member elected in the double dissolution will be allowed to speak in this debate—not one.' The word 'atrocity' gets thrown back and forth pretty often in this place. This one qualifies.

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