Peter Whish-Wilson (Tasmania, Australian Greens) Share this | Hansard source

I want to get it on record, in case I wasn't clear, that we support the intention of this, as we did with the private member's bill, but the difference between us and the Labor Party is that this is not the main game. The main game is amending section 46, a law that we know is unworkable in this country and that we have been campaigning to amend now for some years. That's what we have before us here in the chamber today.

The government has made it clear they won't support this. Labor wants the Greens and others to support this, because they want the bill to be torpedoed. They want this to go down. But we have campaigned long and hard to get section 46 amended. That's the main game here today. We are happy to work with Senator Xenophon or Labor on their private member's bill, and we hope the government gives that consideration when it goes to the other place, but we are here tonight to get a very important reform in place in this parliament, and that is amending section 46 of the Competition Act.