Joe Ludwig (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Manager of Government Business in the Senate) Share this | Hansard source

In that case, Mr Deputy President, I seek leave to make a short explanation.

Leave granted.

I was going to deal with this in one of two ways. The first way was to simply indicate that this matter should be sent off to the Procedure Committee, and of course the formal way of doing that would then be to subsequently create and then move a motion. However, it dawned on me that I could deal with it in one go if the Senate was agreeable and I could amend the substantive motion by adding at the end of the motion ‘and that the Procedure Committee inquire into and report on the operation of the standing order’. That would then have sent it off to the Procedure Committee.

Having listened to some discussion across the chamber, I will not proceed with this amendment. I will ask for it to be referred to the Procedure Committee as a separate motion. It just seems to me it would be easier to deal with it in one go.