Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Fisheries, Forestry and Conservation) Share this | Hansard source

I will quickly seek to dissuade Senator Murray from that course of action. Whilst there are only the three days as opposed to the seven days, there is no doubt in my mind that a lot more people will, as a result, be able to vote from the brand new Australian category—if I can call it that—having become citizens between the issue of the writs and election day, including election day itself. In the past, if you had not become an Australian citizen within those seven days after the writs were issued and you became an Australian citizen on the eighth day after the writs were issued, you were denied the vote. We are saying that you will get the vote from the eighth day right through to whenever the election day may be.