Jacinta Collins (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Cabinet Secretary) Share this | Hansard source

I note the interjections now that I am just 'making it up'. So I am wondering, Senator Cormann, whether you want Labor to deal with the opposition's position in relation to this, or if you want to again stray off this and move on to concerns about this process where the opposition frontbench is not even able to outline the opposition's position in relation to the policy arguments with respect to these provisions without the type of heckling and interjections that are occurring.

So maybe for the benefit of those senators I will highlight why it was I suggested we report progress on the last occasion. I am pleased, Mr Chairman, that you have stayed here because the nature of the chairing was the issue on that occasion. I had been asked to sit down in the middle of my contribution regarding the opposition's position in relation to government amendments (1) to (9). When we sought to clarify from the temporary chair at the time what the issue was, he was not able to elucidate and I was told to get back on my feet again! That was why I suggested the committee report progress. This is the issue for you, Mr Chairman, in your role as Chairman of Committees: if we cannot find temporary chairs who are able to function in the way we need at quarter past four, added to the various interjections that are occurring, it is a problem. It is a problem that I encourage the Greens to consider again when we go down the path of having to deal with legislation by attrition.

I certainly highlight that this is no criticism at all of the senator who, like myself, was attempting to function at quarter past four in the morning. Indeed, I was highlighting—

Honourable senators interjecting—

The CHAIRMAN: Senator Collins, just resume your seat until interjections cease.

I go back to the policy arguments about how millions of Australians will be disenfranchised. No, I am not just making it up. The evidence before JSCEM—Senator Wong was going to go through further quotes, if other senators want further information to highlight this—was that the policy case is not as has been characterised by the government here. There were several criticisms about how millions of Australians will be disenfranchised.

Sadly, this is no accident. It is in fact the intended outcome of the filthy deal cooked up behind closed doors by the Liberals, Greens and Senator Xenophon. This filthy deal has nothing to do with the purported democratic interest of the Australian people or with putting power back into the hands of voters. That has been made obvious by the discussion that we have had so far. Senator Cormann's arguments about choice and what people should be forced to vote for highlighted that more than anything else could have.

I look forward to—Mr Chairman, this is perhaps a question that you might be able to assist the committee with—when we might have access to the Hansard. I wonder whether it might actually be available before we vote finally on this bill. We have covered some significant areas of policy here. Indeed, the capacity for people to revisit some of that discussion, I think, is an important issue.

Let us go back to what in fact this was designed to achieve, which was to maximise the number of senators elected by the major parties, such as the Liberal Party, and the established minor parties, such as the Greens political party and the Nick Xenophon Team. That is clear from the government's own rhetoric. They have not quite said it that way. It has instead been described in terms of dealing with the microparties. But the consequence of that is pretty easy to see and pretty easy to read. It is designed to exhaust preferences early so Independents and the so-called microparties are deprived of votes.