Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition in the Senate) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the Senate. This has been a day in which we have seen the coalition vote against bringing on debate on the ABCC bill. I suppose it was not quite as important as everybody said. We have seen the Greens say no to bringing on an anti coal gas bill. I guess that is not as important as everybody said. And we have seen the Greens vote against bringing on a marriage equality bill. All of those things are apparently less important to the coalition and the Greens than their dirty deal on Senate voting. That is the most important thing.

I want to focus on the marriage equality bill for a moment, because I remember the Greens saying on marriage equality: 'Every Green, every vote, every time'—except today. 'Every Green, every vote, every time'—except today. What an extraordinary performance by Senator Richard Di Natale, who stands in this chamber and calls on me to respond on marriage equality, and then he gags me. He gags me with Senator Brandis because he does not want to hear Labor's answer on marriage equality. I get gagged by the Greens! I expect to be gagged by some on the other side, but for Senator Di Natale and Senator Hanson-Young and Senator Simms and Senator Rhiannon and all of the Greens to vote with Cory Bernardi to make sure that we could not debate marriage equality—that was a sight to behold, wasn't it? That was a sight to behold.

I want to remind people what Senator Di Natale is actually suggesting. He is saying, 'It's all okay, we can do it in private senators' bills.' Everybody in this place knows: it will not get passed. It will not get voted on. Private senators' legislation—one hour—does not get voted on. We all know that; whereas Senator Leyonhjelm's amendment would have ensured a vote. It would have ensured a vote because we would stay until it is voted on. So it is not one hour that they are trying to give on Thursday to get themselves out of the problem that they voted with Senator Cory Bernardi to prevent debate on marriage equality—that is what they have done. This would have actually ensured a vote. 'Every Green, every vote, every time'—but not today. 'No; today we are voting with Senator Bernardi and those on the other side who do not believe that marriage equality should be made a reality.' That is what the Australian Greens have done.

Australian Greens senators interjecting—

You might want to interject, but everybody knows what you have done here today.

What I am interested in is: how come Mr Bandt, in the other place, thought it was so important to bring on the bill? He, to his credit, in the other place supported the Labor Party in seeking to bring on the marriage equality legislation in the House of Representatives, but all of a sudden his Senate colleagues do not believe it is so important. 'Every Green, every vote, every time'—but not today. 'No, not today; today we are voting with the coalition to gag debate.' What has occurred today? Not only has the coalition said no to a debate on this supposedly incredibly important bill, the ABCC bill; not only have the Greens said no to their own bill in relation to coal seam gas; and not only have the Greens said no to Senator Hanson-Young's bill on marriage equality; the Greens have also not had the courage of their convictions to have the debate. They have gagged the debate. Every time something has been moved, they have not had the courage to stand up and articulate their position. They have cut in behind the Leader of the Government in the Senate, Senator Brandis, and gagged debate.

The only exception to that was Senator Di Natale. What hypocrisy! What cowardice! He gets to his feet, demands that I respond, has a go at the Labor Party and then gags us, with Senator Brandis. He gags on us on marriage equality. I have not always agreed—in fact I have disagreed many times—with various of the leaders of the Greens, but I have to say I have never seen a leadership without a backbone like this, never seen a leadership that is not prepared to debate the issue, never seen a leadership prepared to get behind Senator George Brandis to gag debate in this chamber and to treat this chamber not as a chamber of the Australian parliament, where debate occurs, but as a dictatorship. That is how Senator Di Natale is treating this chamber, and you are all going along with him. (Time expired)