Mitch Fifield (Victoria, Liberal Party, Assistant Minister for Social Services) Share this | Hansard source

I move the following amendment to Senator Moore's proposed amendment:

In respect of the Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman Bill 2015 and related bill, omit "11 August 2015", substitute "24 June 2015".

I must say that I am a little perplexed as to the desire of the opposition to seek to delay the opportunity for this bill to pass through the parliament by kicking out the date for the committee to inquire into this legislation. We saw the spectacle—the stunt, if you will—of Mr Shorten, in relation to other important small business legislation the other week when we were in Senate estimates. Mr Shorten's stunt was to move that the question be put—which we know in this place as a gag—and that was supposedly to demonstrate Mr Shorten's commitment to the small-business sector and that somehow he was even more committed than the government to the small-business sector by his desire to race that legislation through the House. There were some who took Mr Shorten's actions at face value—which is something that is always a little dangerous to do—and thought, 'Oh, gee, the opposition is trying to be more than helpful,' and there were some who said, 'Why didn't the government support Mr Shorten's motion that the question be put, because it would have speeded its passage into law?' There is one little problem with that: the Senate was not actually sitting, so allowing those colleagues in the House who wanted to contribute in that debate to contribute would not, in any way, shape or form, have delayed our small business legislation finally coming into law because the Senate was not actually in session. So, having done that in that place, I am a little surprised that, when it comes to our legislation for a Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman, Labor are seeking to delay things. Anyway, I just think there is a little inconsistency there.

We are keen to get on with this. That is why I have moved the amendment—that the committee report not on the date proposed by Senator Moore but sooner.