Senate debates

Wednesday, 11 May 2011

• Condolences (0 speeches)
  • Mr Herbert (Bert) Charles Nicholls (1 speech)
    I inform the Senate of the death, on 10 May 2011, of Herbert (Bert) Charles Nicholls, a former Deputy Clerk of the Senate from 1983 to 1987. Mr Nicholls commenced working with the Department of...
• Committees (0 speeches)
  • Electoral Matters Committee; Appointment (1 speech)
    I seek leave to move a motion to refer a matter to the Joint Standing Committee on Electoral Matters, and to vary the resolution of appointment for this reference. Leave granted. I move the...
• Business (0 speeches)
  • Days and Hours of Meeting (1 speech)
    I move: That—(1) On Tuesday, 14 June and 21 June 2011: (a)   the hours of meeting shall be 12.30 pm to 8 pm; (b)   the routine of business from 4 pm shall be...
• Bills (0 speeches)
  • Therapeutic Goods Legislation Amendment (Copyright) Bill 2011; Second Reading (2 speeches)
    Debate resumed on the motion: That this bill be now read a second time.
  • Therapeutic Goods Legislation Amendment (Copyright) Bill 2011; Third Reading (2 speeches)
    No amendments to the bill have been circulated. Before I call the parliamentary secretary to move the third reading, does any senator wish to have a committee stage on the bill to ask further...
  • Electoral and Referendum Amendment (Provisional Voting) Bill 2011; Second Reading (4 speeches)
    Debate resumed on the motion: That this bill be now read a second time.
  • Electoral and Referendum Amendment (Provisional Voting) Bill 2011; In Committee (36 speeches)
    Bill—by leave—taken as a whole.
  • Electoral and Referendum Amendment (Provisional Voting) Bill 2011; Third Reading (1 speech)
    I move: That this bill be now read a third time. Question put. The Senate divided. [10:56] (The PRESIDENT: Senator Hogg) Question agreed to. Bill read a third time.
  • Electoral and Referendum Amendment (Enrolment and Prisoner Voting) Bill 2010; Second Reading (7 speeches)
    Debate resumed on the motion: That this bill be now read a second time.
  • Electoral and Referendum Amendment (Enrolment and Prisoner Voting) Bill 2010; In Committee (3 speeches)
    Bill—by leave—taken as a whole.
  • Electoral and Referendum Amendment (Enrolment and Prisoner Voting) Bill 2010; Third Reading (1 speech)
    I move: That the bill be now read a third time. Question put. The Senate divided [12:10] Question agreed to. Bill read a third time.
  • Sex and Age Discrimination Legislation Amendment Bill 2010; Second Reading (2 speeches)
    Debate resumed on the motion: That this bill be now read a second time.
• Matters of Public Interest (0 speeches)
  • R v Arthur Phillip Freeman (1 speech)
    I wish to raise in the Senate the tragic event of 29 January 2009 when high on the West Gate Bridge in peak-hour traffic a man named Arthur Freeman threw his four-year-old daughter off the bridge...
  • Building the Education Revolution, Teaching and Learning Capital Fund for Vocational Education and Training (3 speeches)
    Thank you, Acting Deputy President Boyce, for this opportunity to speak today, and indeed, for standing in for me in the chair. I want to speak today about the success of the federal government's...
  • Papua New Guinea (1 speech)
    I wish to follow on from Senator Hutchins's account of his trip by accounting to the Senate a trip which I took to Papua New Guinea, beginning on Thursday, 28 April. I have wanted to go to this...
  • Budget (3 speeches)
    I rise today to make some comments in response to the delivery of the budget by the Treasurer last night, but before I do I would like to acknowledge in the chamber today my very good friend and...
• Questions without Notice (0 speeches)
  • Budget (38 speeches)
    My question is to the Minister for Finance and Deregulation, Senator Wong. Minister, why is the government claiming the $1.7 billion-plus flood tax and $4.5 billion in other new taxes, tax...
  • Forestry (13 speeches)
    Mr President, my question goes to the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, Senator Ludwig. Can he tell the Senate what he knows about the logging of the Gulaga Mountain, south of...
  • Carbon Pricing (15 speeches)
    My question is to the Minister representing the Treasurer, Senator Wong. Is the response to climate change and the imposition of a carbon tax central to the government's economic and fiscal strategy?
  • Budget (13 speeches)
    New South Wales Thank you, Mr President. Now that the rabble has settled down, my question is to the Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills, Jobs and Workplace Relations, Senator Evans. Can the...
  • Crime (6 speeches)
    My question is to the Minister representing the Minister for Privacy and Freedom of Information, Minister for Home Affairs and Minister for Justice, Senator Ludwig. Given the crazy loophole that...
  • Asylum Seekers (9 speeches)
    My question is to the Minister for Finance and Deregulation, Senator Wong. Can the minister confirm that the cost of asylum-seeker management has blown out by a further $1.75 billion, according...
• Questions without Notice: Take Note of Answers (0 speeches)
  • Budget (7 speeches)
    I move: That the Senate take note of answers given by the Minister for Finance and Deregulation (Senator Wong) to questions without notice asked by Opposition senators today relating to the...
• Petitions (0 speeches)
  • Australian War Memorial (0 speeches)
    The petition of the undersigned shows: That we support the Coalition's four point rescue plan for the Australian War Memorial, which includes an immediate $5 million increase in annual government...
  • Marriage (1 speech)
    by leave—I present to the Senate a petition, from 145 citizens, which is not in conformity with the standing orders as it is not in the correct form.
• Notices (0 speeches)
  • Presentation; Postponement (0 speeches)
    The following item of business was postponed: General business notice of motion no. 237 standing in the name of the Chair of the Environment and Communications Legislation Committee (Senator...
• Committees (0 speeches)
  • Finance and Public Administration References Committee; Reporting Date (1 speech)
    At the request of the Chair of the Finance and Public Administration References Committee, Senator Fifield, I move: That the time for the presentation of the report of the Finance and Public...
  • Senators' Interests Committee; Reporting Date (1 speech)
    At the request of the Chair of the Standing Committee of Senators' Interests, Senator Bernardi, I move: That the time for the presentation of the report of the Standing Committee of...
  • Legal and Constitutional Affairs References Committee; Reporting Date (1 speech)
    At the request of the Chair of the Legal and Constitutional Affairs References Committee, Senator Barnett, I move: That the time for the presentation of the report of the Legal and Constitutional...
  • Corporations and Financial Services Committee; Meeting (1 speech)
    At the request of the Chair of the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Corporations and Financial Services, Senator Boyce, I move: That the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Corporations and...
  • Environment and Communications References Committee; Meeting (1 speech)
    At the request of the Chair of the Environment and Communications References Committee, Senator Fisher, I move: That the Environment and Communications References Committee be authorised to hold...
  • Migration Committee; Meeting (1 speech)
    At the request of Senator Bilyk, I move: That the Joint Standing Committee on Migration be authorised to hold a public meeting during the sitting of the Senate on Wednesday, 15 June 2011, from...
  • Environment and Communications Legislation Committee; Meeting (1 speech)
    At the request of the Chair of the Environment and Communications Legislation Committee, Senator Cameron, I move: That the Environment and Communications Legislation Committee be authorised to...
  • Environment and Communications References Committee; Reference (18 speeches)
    I move: That the following matter be referred to the Environment and Communications References Committee for inquiry and report by 12 October 2011: The social, environmental, health, economic and...
  • Legal and Constitutional Affairs References Committee; Reference (1 speech)
    I move: That the following matter be referred to the Legal and Constitutional Affairs References Committee for inquiry and report by 31 October 2011: The incidence of international child...
  • Environment and Communications References Committee; Reference (5 speeches)
    I seek leave to make a short statement.
• Motions (0 speeches)
  • Israel (52 speeches)
    I move: That the Senate—   (a)   notes:      (i)   its decision on 23 March 2011 to acknowledge that Israel is a legitimate...
  • Middle East (1 speech)
    I move: That the Senate supports the aspirations and rights of the Palestinian people and the Israeli people to an independent state, living in peace and free of the threat of invasion from its...
  • Budget (9 speeches)
    I ask that general business notice of motion No. 228 standing in my name for today, which calls on the government to review its imposition of the efficiency dividend on cultural institutions like...
  • Nuclear Safety (1 speech)
    I seek leave to amend general business notice of motion No. 230. Leave granted. I move the motion as amended: That the Senate—   (a)   notes that:...
  • Asylum Seekers (4 speeches)
    I seek leave to amend general business notice of motion No. 239 standing in my name for today relating to the government's asylum seeker arrangement with Malaysia. Leave granted. I have...
• Matters of Public Importance (0 speeches)
  • (14 speeches)
    The President has received the following letter from Senator Fifield: Dear Mr President Pursuant to standing order 75, I propose that the following matter of public importance be submitted to the...
• Committees (0 speeches)
  • Scrutiny of Bills Committee; Report (1 speech)
    On behalf of Senator Coonan, I present a report and alert digest of the Standing Committee for the Scrutiny of Bills. Ordered that the report be printed. I move: That the Senate take note of the...
  • Public Accounts and Audit Committee; Documents (1 speech)
    On behalf of Senator Bishop and the Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit, I table a statement on the draft budget estimates for the Australian National Audit Office for 2011-2012, and...
  • Public Accounts and Audit Committee; Report (1 speech)
    On behalf of Senator Bishop, I present the 422nd report of the Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit, Review of the 2009-10 Defence Materiel Organisation major projects. I move: That the...
  • Treaties Committee; Report (1 speech)
    On behalf of Senator McGauran, I present the 116th report of the Joint Standing Committee on Treaties—Review into Treaties tabled on 24 and 25 November 2010, 9 February and 1 March 2011 and...
  • Legal and Constitutional Affairs Legislation Committee; Corrigenda to Report (1 speech)
    On behalf of Senator Crossin, I present a correction to the report of the Legal and Constitutional Affairs Legislation Committee on the Wild Rivers (Environmental Management) Bill 2011. Ordered...
• Documents (0 speeches)
  • Credit Card Surcharging; Tabling (1 speech)
    I table a response from the Assistant Treasurer, Mr Shorten, to a resolution of the Senate of 17 November 2010 concerning credit card surcharging.
• Delegation Reports (0 speeches)
  • Parliamentary Delegation to Bhutan and Mongolia (1 speech)
    by leave—I present the report of the Australian parliamentary delegation to Bhutan and Mongolia that took place from 9 to 21 July 2010. I seek leave to move a motion in relation to the...
  • Parliamentary Delegation to the 19th Annual Meeting of the Asia Pacific Parliamentary Forum, Ulaanbaatar (1 speech)
    by leave—I present the report of the Australian Parliamentary Delegation to the 19th annual meeting of the Asia Pacific Parliamentary Forum which took place in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, from...
• Documents (0 speeches)
  • Tabling (1 speech)
    The Clerk: Documents are tabled in accordance with the list circulated to senators. Letters of advice in response to the continuing order relating to departmental and agency appointments,...
• Committees (0 speeches)
  • Environment and Communications References Committee; Membership (1 speech)
    I seek leave to move a motion to vary the membership of a committee. Leave granted. I move— That Senator Bob Brown replace Senator Ludlam on the Environment and Communications References...
  • Public Works Committee, National Broadband Network Committee; Membership (0 speeches)
    Messages have been received from the House of Representatives notifying the Senate of the appointment of members to the Parliamentary Joint Standing Committee on Public Works and the Joint...
• Bills (0 speeches)
  • Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs and Other Legislation Amendment (Budget and Other Measures) Bill 2010; Returned from the House of Representatives (0 speeches)
    A message has been received from the House of Representatives agreeing to the amendments made by the Senate to the Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs and Other...
  • Midwife Professional Indemnity Legislation Amendment Bill 2011; Returned from the House of Representatives (1 speech)
    A message has been received from the House of Representatives forwarding the Midwife Professional Indemnity Legislation Amendment Bill 2011 for concurrence.
  • Sex and Age Discrimination Legislation Amendment Bill 2010; Second Reading (2 speeches)
    Debate resumed on the motion: That this bill be now read a second time.
  • Sex and Age Discrimination Legislation Amendment Bill 2010; In Committee (15 speeches)
    Bill—by leave—taken as a whole.
• Documents (0 speeches)
  • Royal Australian Air Force Welfare Recreational Company, Report for 2008-09 (1 speech)
    I move: That the Senate take note of the document. I want to make some remarks in relation to this report, although I will probably make my substantive comments on the next document. With respect...
  • Royal Australian Air Force Welfare Recreational Company, Report for 2009-10 (1 speech)
    I move: That the Senate take note of the document. I note in this report, although it is a little late coming before the parliament, that the report does in this instance contain a chairman's...
  • Natural Heritage Trust of Australia; Consideration (0 speeches)
    The government documents tabled earlier today (see entry no. 2) were called on but no motion was moved. The following orders of the day relating to government documents were considered:...
• Adjournment (0 speeches)
  • Harrington, Mr Ian (1 speech)
    I rise tonight to honour the memory of a friend and colleague, Ian Harrington. Ian leaves behind his wife of 42 years, Fran, his five children, Tricia, Cheryl, Linda, Michelle and Greg, and 14...
  • Fitzgerald, Mr Alan (1 speech)
    I too rise to note the passing of a significant Australian. Mr Alan Fitzgerald passed away on 31 March 2011. Alan was a distinguished journalist, author and satirist. He was a founder and former...
  • Cluster Bombs (1 speech)
    On 17 January 2008, a two-year-old child, Dokthjan Saynaydet, was playing with his brother and seven other boys in their home town in Laos. They chanced upon an unexploded cluster submunition, or...
  • Relay for Life (1 speech)
    I rise to speak about one of those wonderful fundraisers that many politicians get involved in, and that is the Cancer Council's Relay for Life. I will specifically refer to the Cancer Council's...
• Documents (0 speeches)
  • Departmental and Agency Contracts (0 speeches)
    The following document was tabled pursuant to the order of the Senate of 24 June 2008, as amended: Departmental and agency appointments and vacancies—Budget estimates—Letter of...
  • Tabling (0 speeches)
    The following documents were tabled by the Clerk: [Legislative instruments are identified by a Federal Register of Legislative Instruments (FRLI) number. An explanatory statement is tabled with...
• Questions on Notice (0 speeches)
  • Banking (Question No. 61) (2 speeches)
    (Question No. 61)
  • Banking (Question No. 62) (2 speeches)
    ask the Minister representing the Minister for Financial Services and Superannuation, upon notice, on 28 September 2010 If a bank receives a series of offers for a secured liability: (a) how are...
  • Banking (Question No. 63) (2 speeches)
    asked the Minister representing the Minister for Financial Services and Superannuation, upon notice, on 29 September 2010: Do bank staff receive formal training in the realisation of assets.
  • Banking (Question No. 64) (2 speeches)
    asked the Minister representing the Minister for Financial Services and Superannuation, upon notice, on 29 September 2010: (a) How much training are banks and lending institutions required to...
  • Banking (Question No. 66 (2 speeches)
    asked the Minister representing the Minister for Financial Services and Superannuation, upon notice, on 29 September 2010: When any assets are, or property is, sold, does a bank take steps to...
  • Banking (Question No. 67) (2 speeches)
    the Minister representing the Minister for Financial Services and Superannuation, upon notice, on 29 September 2010: Is there any control over costs incurred, such as a quote obtained for advice...
  • Banking (Question No. 68) (2 speeches)
    asked the Minister representing the Minister for Financial Services and Superannuation, upon notice, on 29 September 2010: Who supervises the recovery process, and to whom are bak staff...
  • Banking (Question No. 69) (2 speeches)
    asked the Minister representing the Minister for Financial Services and Superannuation, upon notice, on 29 September 2010: Is there an external professional body that monitors the recovery...
  • Banking (Question No. 70) (2 speeches)
    asked the Minister representing the Minister for Financial Services and Superannuation, upon notice, on 29 September 2010: Is there a code of conduct that bank staff have to observe in the...
  • Banking (Question No. 71) (2 speeches)
    asked the Minister representing the Minister for Financial Services and Superannuation, upon notice, on 29 September 2010: Is there a prescribed level of quality control on recovery procedures;...
  • Banking (Question No. 75) (2 speeches)
    asked the Minister representing the Minister for Financial Services and Superannuation, upon notice, on 29 September 2010: Have there been any situations where the banks' 'all Monies clause' has...
  • Superannuation (Question No. 196) (2 speeches)
    asked the Minister for Finance and Deregulation, upon notice, on 16 November 2010: Given the advice provided by the department's 'Red Book' to the Minister that the 'current unfunded liability'...
  • Superannuation (Question No. 197) (2 speeches)
    asked the Minister for Finance and Deregulation, upon notice, on 16 November 2010: In both the submissions from the department and the Australian Government Actuary (AGA) to the Matthews Review,...
  • Superannuation (Question No. 198) (2 speeches)
    asked the Minister for Finance and Deregulation, upon notice, on 16 November 2010: (1) Given the impact of previous assumptions on the financial wellbeing of Commonwealth and military retirees,...
  • Superannuation (Question No. 199) (2 speeches)
    asked the Minister for Finance and Deregulation, upon notice, on 16 November 2010: Given that Chapter 1 of Professor Pollard's 1974 report (Report on the Treasurer's Proposals for a new...
  • Superannuation (Question No. 200) (3 speeches)
    asked the Minister for Finance and Deregulation, upon notice, on 16 November 2010: The Matthew's Review report (Review of pension indexation arrangements in Australian Government civilian and...
  • Superannuation (Question No. 201) (2 speeches)
    (Question No. 201)
  • Defence Force Retirement and Death Benefits (Question No. 202) (2 speeches)
    asked the Minister for Finance and Deregulation, upon notice, on 16 November 2010: Given that in the Defence Force Retirement and Death Benefits (DFRDB) annual reports for 2008-09 and 2009-10...
  • Veterans' Affairs: Funding (Question No. 223) (2 speeches)
    asked the Minister representing the Minister for Veterans' Affairs, upon notice, on 29 November 2010: (1) Has the Minister received any correspondence on funding issues surrounding the Australian...
  • Veterans' Affairs (Question No. 301) (2 speeches)
    asked the Minister representing the Minister for Veterans ' Affairs , upon notice, on 29 November 2010: Since 14 September 2010, for each Minister and any Parliamentary Secretaries within their...
  • International Commission on Nuclear Non-proliferation and Disarmament (Question No. 328) (2 speeches)
    asked the Minister representing the Minister for Foreign Affairs, upon notice, on 6 December 2010: With reference to disarmament diplomacy: (1) What is the status of the recommendations in the...
  • Uranium Mining (Question No. 335) (2 speeches)
    asked the Minister representing the Minister for Foreign Affairs, upon notice, on 6 December 2010: In regard to the potential sale of Australian uranium to Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT)...
  • Uranium Mining (Question No. 337) (2 speeches)
    asked the Minister representing the Minister for Foreign Affairs, upon notice, on 6 December 2010: With reference to the proposed new treaty with China for precedent sale of Australian uranium in...
  • Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (Question No. 343) (2 speeches)
    asked the Minister representing the Minister for Foreign Affairs, upon notice, on 13 December 2010: With reference to AusAID and the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI): (1) Can...
  • Broadband (Question No. 355) (2 speeches)
    asked the Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy, upon notice, on 13 December 2010: With reference to analog self-help retransmission towers in remote areas: (1) Did the...
  • Automotive Transformation Scheme (Question No. 379) (2 speeches)
    asked the Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research, upon notice, on 3 February 2011: (1) What amount of funding has been spent and/or committed under the Automotive Transformation...
  • South Australian Innovation and Investment Fund (Question No. 384) (2 speeches)
    asked the Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills, Jobs and Workplace Relations, upon notice, on 16 February 2011: As at 25 January 2011: (1) What amount of funding has been spent and/or...
  • Tertiary Education, Skills, Jobs and Workplace Relations: Furniture (Question No. 388) (2 speeches)
    asked the Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills, Jobs and Workplace Relations, upon notice, on 10 February 2011: What is the total cost of office furniture (whether new or refurbished): (a)...
  • Tertiary Education, Skills, Jobs and Workplace Relations: Water (Question No. 389) (2 speeches)
    asked the Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills, Jobs and Workplace Relations, upon notice, on 10 February 2011: (1) What is the total cost of water coolers: (a) purchased; and (b) leased, by...
  • Tertiary Education, Skills, Jobs and Workplace Relations: Plants (Question No. 390) (2 speeches)
    asked the Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills, Jobs and Workplace Relations, upon notice, on 10 February 2011: What is the total cost of plants: (a) purchased; and (b) leased, by the...
  • Tertiary Education, Skills and Workplace Relations: Floor Coverings (Question No. 391) (2 speeches)
    asked the Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills, Jobs and Workplace Relations, upon notice, on 10 February 2011: What are the total costs of floor coverings (whether new or refurbished): for...
  • Tertiary Education, Skills, Jobs and Workplace Relations: Window Furnishings (Question No. 392) (2 speeches)
    asked the Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills, Jobs and Workplace Relations, upon notice, on 10 February 2011: What are the total costs for window furnishings (whether new or refurbished):...
  • Tertiary Education, Skills, Jobs and Workplace Relations: Coffee Machines (Question No. 393) (2 speeches)
    asked the Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills, Jobs and Workplace Relations, upon notice, on 10 February 2011: (1) What is the total cost of coffee machines (whether new or refurbished) and...
  • Tertiary Education, Skills, Jobs and Workplace Relations: Subscriptions (Question No. 395) (2 speeches)
    asked the Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills, Jobs and Workplace Relations, upon notice, on 10 February 2011: What is the total cost of newspapers, magazines, circular subscriptions and...
  • Tertiary Education, Skills, Jobs and Workplace Relations: Stationery (Question No. 397) (2 speeches)
    asked the Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills, Jobs and Workplace Relations, upon notice, on 10 February 2011: What is the total quantity and cost of A4 paper used by the department and its...
  • Tertiary Education, Skills, Jobs and Workplace Relations: Reports (Question No. 398) (2 speeches)
    asked the Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills, Jobs and Workplace Relations, upon notice, on 10 February 2011: Can a list be provided detailing: (a) the reports generated by the department...
  • Tertiary Education, Skills, Jobs and Workplace Relations (Question No. 402) (2 speeches)
    asked the Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills, Jobs and Workplace Relations, upon notice, on 10 February 2011: Can a list be provided detailing the number of laptops, Netbooks, iPads,...
  • Tertiary Education, Skills, Jobs and Workplace Relations: Staffing (Question No. 403) (2 speeches)
    asked the Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills, Jobs and Workplace Relations, upon notice, on 10 February 2011: With reference to staffing levels in the department and each of its agencies...
  • Tertiary Education, Skills, Jobs and Workplace Relations: Staffing (Question No. 404) (2 speeches)
    asked the Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills, Jobs and Workplace Relations, upon notice, on 10 February 2011: Can a list be provided detailing the number and classifications of: (a) Personal...
  • Special Minister of State (Question No. 431) (2 speeches)
    asked the Minister representing the Special Minister of State, upon notice, on 11 March 2011: (1) According to what criteria are act of grace and ex-gratia payments granted by the Government. (2)...
  • Superannuation (Question No. 432) (2 speeches)
    asked the Minister representing the Minister for Financial Services and Superannuation, upon notice, on 11 March 2011: (1) How many complaints did the Superannuation Complaints Tribunal receive...