Fiona Nash (NSW, National Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Regional Education) Share this | Hansard source

Pursuant to contingent notice, and at the request of the Leader of the Opposition in the Senate, I move:

That so much of the standing orders be suspended as would prevent Senator Nash moving a motion relating to the conduct of the business of the Senate, namely a motion to provide for the consideration of the Social Security Amendment (Income Support for Regional Students) Bill 2010 and message No. 38 from the House of Representatives, as circulated in the chamber.

I certainly tried to use appropriate processes so that this bill could be considered at this time during these sitting weeks. Unfortunately, the government was not of a mind to accommodate that. The reason that it is very important that we debate this bill today is the timeliness of this bill. This bill relates to the changes that the government made earlier in the year to the provisions in the independent youth allowance. We have spent all year with thousands of students across the country who are absolutely desperate because they no longer have access to a funding mechanism that would allow them to start university or further tertiary education next year. That is the reason it is so important for us to debate this bill now, and the government’s refusal to do so is really quite extraordinary. The government did not want to debate this bill, and we can only ask why not.