Kate Chaney (Curtin, Independent) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to support this motion so we can debate and pass this bill and the others excised from the 'closing the loopholes' bill by the Senate. I thank Senators Jacqui Lambie, Tammy Tyrrell and David Pocock for their hard work passing this and three other important pieces of legislation through the Senate, excising them from the omnibus 'closing the loopholes' bill so they can be addressed quickly.

This bill provides clearer rules around small-business insolvencies, and the bills to follow simplify compensation for first responders, expand the Asbestos Safety and Eradication Agency and improve protections for employees subjected to family and domestic violence. These four matters have broad consensus support from unions, business groups, political parties and workers, and essentially these measures are the government's own legislation, own drafting and own words. The government has deemed these issues important enough to include in an omnibus bill, so it would seem pure politicking if the government chooses to vote against passing these bills today.

The practice of combining uncontroversial reforms with controversial changes in order to create a wedge doesn't respect the need for parliament to debate changes on their merit. As an Independent, I think very carefully about every vote and I'm willing to explain my position to my constituents. When called to vote on an omnibus bill where I back some but not all changes, I have to either vote against parts that I want to support or vote for parts I don't want to support. By separating uncontroversial parts, such as this bill, I'm able to demonstrate my support for small business, for first responders and for workers who work with dangerous products without signing up to a whole lot of other changes with broad and unknown consequences.

The remainder of the 'closing the loopholes' bill needs to be considered further in accordance with parliamentary processes to ensure its consequences are fully understood. It seems like an appropriate decision to debate these parts today and defer the bulk of the 'closing the loopholes' bill until next year, when it can be properly debated. I urge the government and every member of the House to support this motion so we can pass these measures into law as soon as possible.

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