Karen Andrews (McPherson, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise in this debate on behalf of the many Australians who expect higher standards of parliamentary behaviour than what we have been witnessing lately, and who recognise that decent standards must start with respect for the role of the Speaker of the House.

Madam Speaker, from the very day that you were elected to the role, the Opposition, led by the Manager of Opposition Business, has displayed a patent lack of respect. He stood up in this place, just minutes after your election and said:

This day in parliament, probably more than any other, functions like a first day back at school. People have remarked today about this being reminiscent of the Harry Potter novel in which they all returned to Hogwarts and found that Dumbledore was gone and Dolores Umbridge was in charge of the school.

Without going into detail about the character, Dolores Umbridge, it is sufficient to say that she is a particularly cruel witch. It is clear that for the Manager of Opposition Business to refer to you in that manner was unpleasant and uncomplimentary. At the time many of us dismissed the comments as an attempt at humour that had overstepped the mark. However, looking back, it was the start of a very disrespectful pattern of behaviour.

But the Manager of Opposition Business was not alone in the Labor ranks that day. Even before he made his derogatory remarks, the member for Wills set the ball rolling by saying:

No-one doubts that the member for Mackellar is experienced, but we have experience of her. I think members will understand what I am saying when I say that she is very black and white: there are certainly no shades of grey with her.

Madam Speaker, that very first day was an insight into Labor's approach to you as Speaker. They did not want you in the job, and a pattern of disrespect and disruption has continued ever since.

Those opposite spin a fairytale that they are victims who have been pushed to the brink, and that their behaviour is an outpouring of frustration over what they think is long-standing unfairness. But that is simply not true. In fact, on 10 December last year, the Manager of Opposition Business and the member for Grayndler themselves turned parliament into a farce by moving dissent from your ruling because they did not like debate on a bill being guillotined. A hypocritical move, given Labor guillotined debates on many occasions during the last parliament.

Madam Speaker, the Manager of Opposition Business described your comments as:

… a half-funny, childish interjection.

The member for Grayndler screamed, 'That is outrageous!' in a theatrical fit of pique. And this, they believe, is an appropriate way to address the Speaker of the House of Representatives? I do not think so. And their poor behaviour continued the very next day, with the member for Oxley coming out and accusing you of 'sledging'.

All of this took place only a few sitting weeks into this parliament. This was not pent-up frustration spilling over. This was not a heated response to so many of their members being named for their poor behaviour. It was clearly part of a concerted and deliberate campaign to undermine you.

But I believe this attack on the Speaker is really just the manifestation of a broader problem with Labor: they just cannot accept that they are not in government. They cannot accept that at the last election a majority of Australians voted for change. They cannot accept that they no longer run the parliament. And we see that bitterness reflected in their actions. The name calling, the faux outrage and the drama; it is all just one big temper tantrum because Labor has not got what they want.

Madam Speaker, it would take more time than I have to list the full extent of the treatment meted out by Labor. But I do want to make this point: in the nominating debate, the member for Moreton said:

Let us have a look at how the member for Mackellar has treated the sisterhood when given the opportunity.

Well I ask, where is the sisterhood now? Where are the former senior female Labor ministers who were collectively dubbed 'the handbag hit squad'? If anyone on our side of politics had treated the former Labor Speaker, the member for Chisholm, with the same contempt there would have been howls of protest and cries of 'misogyny' from the very people who now behave so poorly. But now there is silence. Perhaps it is because for Labor women it is only a misogynist attack when it is conservatives dealing with women—not the males of the Labor Party right wing.

Madam Speaker, Australians expect better standards of conduct than what the Labor Party have displayed towards you. So I say to members opposite: take a long, hard look at your behaviour. Let's stop the tantrums, let's stop the confected outrage and let's accept the result of the last election. But most of all, let's behave in a civil manner and show some respect to the Speaker of the House.