Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations) Share this | Hansard source

The motion before the Senate today highlights yet again what a shambolic, dysfunctional and incompetent government presides over our nation. We have the spectacle of the Leader of the Government in the Senate, no less, who doubles as Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy, not understanding the procedures of the Senate. The Leader of the Government in the Senate and minister for communications should have known that this motion should have been moved last week and dealt with last week.

Now what the Senate is confronted with is a situation where Labor, using the sheer dint of numbers, have organised a hearing in Canberra today and got witnesses to Canberra today knowing full well that it would only take two senators—only two senators—to call a division on this motion and, as a result, stop the hearing from 10 am.

Senator Jacinta Collins interjecting—

Even the Manager of Government Business in Senate does not understand that standing orders provide that, if any two senators call a division on a Monday morning, there cannot be that division held until 12.30 pm on the Monday, which is half an hour after the conclusion of the proposed hearing.

The Leader of the Government in the Senate and minister for communications, Senator Conroy, scrambled this package together in such indecent haste that we have even had leaks from cabinet indicating that they were not properly briefed, that they were not properly told what the package contained. And, if that were not enough, we then have the caucus leaking a complaint. Indeed, Senator Gavin Marshall, the chair of caucus, has been reported in the media as indicating that caucus were also ambushed and treated with absolute and utter contempt. To complete this trifecta of incompetence and ambushing, we now have the same treatment from cabinet and caucus meted out in the Senate today.

We as a coalition have indicated that we oppose these measures. Why? We believe in the freedom of the media. The Labor Party believe in government control of the media. We actually believe that our democracy is well served by having a free press. We actually believe that our nation is well served by having diversity and that freedom. The Labor Party clearly are on a different page in relation to those fundamental principles. Might I add, that is one of the great distinctions between the coalition parties and those who sit on the other side of this chamber. And, when I say 'those who sit on the other side of this chamber', I advisedly use that term, because that is where the Australian Greens sit in alliance with this dysfunctional, shambolic and incompetent government. It is a great distinction that the Labor Party have been able to draw to the Australian people's attention.

The coalition are in a situation of looking at the witness list and seeing that a number of witnesses have arrived in Canberra ready, willing and able to give their evidence. We also see that these people will be giving evidence highlighting the huge flaws in this legislation. As a result, we will not stand in the way of allowing these hearings to take place. But what we want to put on the record very, very strongly is that we oppose these measures, because we actually do believe in that fundamental concept of freedom of speech.

We also wish to highlight yet again that this is a government racked by internal division and so incompetent and incapable of getting its ducks in a row to organise these hearings appropriately in advance. What we have is not only incompetence by this government but also the sheer arrogance of this government. There was no, 'Please, can we organise a committee and witnesses on the basis that you might assist us on Monday morning?' No, they just go ahead and do it and then rely on the decency of the coalition. And I can tell you that the Labor Party and the Greens can always rely on the decency of the opposition to do the right thing by the nation. But I say to those opposite: they who organised this shambolic hearing, this truncated hearing, this short hearing, without the permission of the Senate have got themselves into an absolute mess. They are the architects of their own embarrassment this morning by not following Senate procedure—and it is a compounded embarrassment when that incompetence is presided over by none other than the Leader of the Government in this place.

In brief, we as a coalition in this chamber will vote on the voices but we will not be seeking a division on the matter.