Scott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Immigration and Citizenship) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That so much of the standing and sessional orders be suspended to enable the Member for Cook to move the following motion:

That the House not consider Government Business order of the day No.1, the Migration Amendment (Temporary Sponsored Visas) Bill 2013, until such time as a:

(1) full research report is completed on the true incidence and nature of abuses and non-compliance within the 457 visas programme, in comparison to other programmes, by the Department of Immigration and Citizenship to substantiate the requirement for the measures proposed in the bill;

(2) full consultation programme with industry and other stakeholders has been conducted by the Department of Immigration and Citizenship on the impacts of the measures contained in the bill; and

(3) regulatory impact statement has been completed by the Government in relation to Schedule 2 of the bill relating to the proposed labour market testing regime as required by the Office of Best Practice Regulation and submitted to the Parliament.

The government is seeking to ram through this Migration Amendment (Temporary Sponsored Visas) Bill 2013 for the unions before the election.

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Speaker, I rise on a point of order.

Opposition members interjecting—

Ms Anna Burke (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The member has the right to raise a point of order! The member for Cook does not have the call; the Leader of the House does.

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you, Speaker. This is the second attempted suspension of standing orders in a row. In the past it has been ruled by previous Speakers that where there are—

An honourable member interjecting—

consecutive—thank you—suspensions of standing orders in order to disrupt the parliament, it has been regarded as disorderly conduct. Given the state of the parliament in our last sitting days and the amount of business that is before the parliament, I fail to understand what is motivating the member for Cook in moving this motion. The fact is this legislation was introduced in the normal way and is being dealt with in the normal way.

Ms Anna Burke (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Leader of the House will resume his seat. The member for Sturt will resume his seat. Yes, it is a consecutive suspension, but it is a different motion. The member for Cook has the call.

Scott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Immigration and Citizenship) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you, Madam Speaker. The point of this motion is to suspend sessional and standing orders to prevent this bill being debated in this parliament because the government has not consulted, it has not done its homework. It is making up claims about abuses in the system: 10,000 abuses, the minister has said, and he has had to openly admit that he just completely made it up. That is the basis for the bill that is coming before this parliament at the behest of the unions. Just how much more union business do you want to get into this parliament?

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Deputy Speaker, I rise on a point of order. The member for Cook is casting aspersions on the minister. He is not allowed. During a suspension of standing orders, he must discuss why standing orders should be suspended. He has not mentioned one word about that, and he is out of order.

Kirsten Livermore (Capricornia, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Cook has the call.

Scott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Immigration and Citizenship) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Standing and sessional orders should be suspended because the government is seeking to ram a union driven bill through this parliament in the last days of the 43rd Parliament. This bill has not been subject to the proper consultation and processes necessary for this House to consider it, and the government is seeking to ram through things on behalf of the unions.

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Deputy Speaker, I rise on a point of order. Standing order 90, Reflections on Members, indicates:

All imputations of improper motives to a Member and all personal reflections on other Members shall be considered highly disorderly.

The member for Cook has reflected on the motivations of the minister who has brought this legislation before the parliament.

Mr Pyne interjecting—

The Manager of Opposition Business has just indicated, again, that the member for Cook is being disorderly—

Christopher Pyne (Sturt, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Education, Apprenticeships and Training) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

No, I said that you were being disorderly!

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

by pointing out that he is putting forward the argument. He must stick to why standing orders should be suspended, and he must withdraw the reflection on the minister. He should withdraw.

Kirsten Livermore (Capricornia, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the minister. I ask the member for Cook to withdraw, as requested by the minister.

An opposition member: Withdraw what?

Scott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Immigration and Citizenship) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

To assist the House, I withdraw, Madam Deputy Speaker.

Kirsten Livermore (Capricornia, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I appreciate that. The member for Cook will confine his remarks to the motion.

Scott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Immigration and Citizenship) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Let me table, for the benefit of the House, the open letter to members of this parliament from the Australian Industry Group, the Business Council of Australia and the Migration Council of Australia, which have refuted the claim made up by the minister about 10,000 abuses of the system. It says:

We are greatly concerned by the lack of supporting evidence, damaging rhetoric and poor process …

This is why standing orders need to be suspended—because process and consultation have not been followed.

Kirsten Livermore (Capricornia, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Cook will resume his seat. He is still not speaking to the motion to suspend the standing orders.

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Mackellar, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Seniors) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

This is vexatious!

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

There is some element of irony in those opposite objecting to points of order being made, but nonetheless this is a motion to suspend standing orders and the member for Cook—

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop interjecting—

Kirsten Livermore (Capricornia, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order!

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Mackellar, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Seniors) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

What is your point of order?

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

You never got to be Speaker, Bronwyn.

Kirsten Livermore (Capricornia, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The minister has the call and will address his point of order.

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Cook must address why standing orders should be suspended.

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop interjecting—

Christopher Pyne (Sturt, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Education, Apprenticeships and Training) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

He is. This is a vexatious point of order.

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Further to my point of order, under standing order 65, Deputy Speaker, while I have been giving my point of order, the member for Mackellar has continued to interject and throw slurs across the chamber, as has the Manager of Opposition Business. Both of them clearly want to be Speaker—and there have been opportunities to put themselves forward before now.

Kirsten Livermore (Capricornia, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The minister has made his point of order. The member for Cook will continue addressing the motion before the House.

Scott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Immigration and Citizenship) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Madam Deputy Speaker, as I was saying: standing and sessional orders should be suspended because this government is seeking to ram a bill through this parliament without following proper process and without doing the proper consultation and homework on the bill that is required. Again, I seek further to read from the letter:

… damaging rhetoric, poor process—

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Standing order 90 indicates that you cannot make imputations against members. As Leader of the House, I have strong objections to the imputation that a bill is being 'rammed through' this parliament when there is no bill even being discussed in this parliament. No-one on this side of the House has moved that any questions be put. What we seek to facilitate is discussion—

Kirsten Livermore (Capricornia, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The minister will resume his seat. The member for Mackellar is seeking the call.

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Mackellar, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Seniors) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Madam Deputy Speaker, on a point of order: I would refer you to page 189 of Practice. I would refer you to the paragraph that says that members have been disciplined by the chair for raising spurious or frivolous points of order or introducing debate when rising on a point of order and for persisting with a matter. As chair, Madam Deputy Speaker, it is incumbent upon you to rule him out of order and not take any more points of order, as the chair has often done when she sees that it is to put another spurious point of order.

Kirsten Livermore (Capricornia, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Mackellar has made her point of order.

Scott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Immigration and Citizenship) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Standing and sessional orders need to be suspended in order to ensure that this government—

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That the member be no longer heard.

Kirsten Livermore (Capricornia, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The question is that the member be no longer heard.

Ms Anna Burke (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Is the motion seconded?

Teresa Gambaro (Brisbane, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Citizenship and Settlement) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I second this motion. This bill is based on a false premise. It is based on the fact that the minister has made up the number of rorts in order to run down the 457 program.

Ms Anna Burke (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Brisbane will resume her seat!

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Firstly, under standing order 90, the member must withdraw that allegation against the minister.

Ms Anna Burke (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Brisbane could withdraw for the assistance of the House and to progress.

Teresa Gambaro (Brisbane, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Citizenship and Settlement) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Speaker, I withdraw.

Ms Anna Burke (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member.

Teresa Gambaro (Brisbane, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Citizenship and Settlement) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

But the bill is still based on a false premise on the number of supposed rorts—

Ms Anna Burke (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Brisbane will resume her seat. The Leader of the House?

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Speaker, this is a suspension of standing orders. The member must address why—

The SPEAKER: Leader of the House will resume his seat—and the individuals around will desist from assisting the chair! The Leader of the House.

The member must address why standing orders should be suspended and not address the substance of the motion.

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop interjecting—

I ask that that be withdrawn by the member for Mackellar.

Ms Anna Burke (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Leader of the House will resume his seat. The member for Mackellar will withdraw!

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Mackellar, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Seniors) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I withdraw.

Ms Anna Burke (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member. The member for Brisbane has the call and must address the motion before the House.

Teresa Gambaro (Brisbane, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Citizenship and Settlement) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Standing and sessional orders should be suspended because the premise on which the bill is brought into the House is that no research has been done on the particular incidences and nature of abuses. A full consultation with industry and other stakeholders has not occurred by the Department of Immigration and Citizenship, and a regulatory impact statement has not been brought into the House—

Ms Anna Burke (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Brisbane will resume her seat!

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Brisbane almost got there, Speaker, but I move that the member be no longer heard.

Ms Anna Burke (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The question is that the member be no longer heard.

Mr Albanese interjecting —

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop interjecting—

Order! The Leader of the House! People should be aware that in the middle of a division making comments is even more dubious than when we are actually in the normal process. The Leader of the House.

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I would ask the member for Mackellar to withdraw.

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Mackellar, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Seniors) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

What have I got to withdraw this time? I said the woman was never allowed—

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

That is not what you said.

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop interjecting—

Ms Anna Burke (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The member for Mackellar! I did not hear the comment. I am not going to ask the member for Mackellar to withdraw, but I will remind people that reflections on members are highly inappropriate. The question is that the member be no longer heard.

Ms Anna Burke (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The time for debate has expired.