David Feeney (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Parliamentary Secretary for Defence) Share this | Hansard source

Thank you Senator Xenophon for those fine remarks concerning my electoral record in South Australia, not the least of which is, of course, the Labor Party's high standards for truth in advertising and proper respect for the electoral process.

Firstly, in the progress of this matter I am advised that pursuant to the government's arrangements with the Greens these matters are to be discussed and to reach finality by October of this year. From the government's perspective, the Special Minister of State for the Public Service and Integrity has carriage of these matters, obviously, and is charged with the task of negotiating these matters with the Greens with a view to those discussions concluding in October.

I might just also briefly respond to some of the remarks made by Senator Ludlam. In their contribution to the debate today the Greens raised a range of issues. My point would be that in the government's view none of those issues—while all virtuous of themselves—are advanced by the amendment proposed by Senator Xenophon. That, of course, is the critical point. Our view is that Senator Xenophon's amendment does not advance at all, in particular, as a matter of law. enator Xenophon's amend­ment merely repeats the current test found in section 329, which is a test which, as you said yourself in your remarks, has been read down by the courts so as to limit this to the actual fact of marking a ballot paper. Really, so long as that is the case, I do not think Senator Xenophon's amendment provides you with relief on those various questions that you highlighted in your remarks. So I guess, in that vein, the government continues to oppose these amendments, not least of all because they are of no practical effect.