Ian Macdonald (Queensland, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

The motion before the chair is that so much of standing orders be set aside as would prevent Senator O'Sullivan from moving this motion as a formal motion. That's the part of the debate I want to briefly contribute to. I find the attitude of the Labor Party absolutely hypocritical, and I encourage Senator Collins to read the Hansard of what Senator Chisholm said last week in dealing with the same situation. Senator Chisholm said that the Labor Party would never stop any motion being dealt with as a formal motion and allowing people to vote on it.

On the substantive motion, which I always think shouldn't be discussed on these occasions to set aside, can I say this: I'll be leaving the chamber when the motion comes up. There are elements of the substantive motion which I totally agree with. The suggestion of any abortion being based on gender selection is abhorrent to me and should be to everybody, and senators should be allowed to have a vote on that. There are some elements, some wording of the balance of the motion, that give me some concern—and which weren't going to be amended—so I'm going to leave the chamber and not vote. But, having said that, I think it is hypocritical of this chamber, in this particular instance only, to prevent the motion being dealt with in the normal course of events. These sorts of things happen all the time.

With respect to Senator Collins—her argument was pure hypocrisy, in that the Labor Party, every day of the week, and the Greens, every day of the week, have these similar sorts of motions brought before the chamber, dealt with as formalities, and then senators are old enough and wise enough to be able to form a decision on whether they either vote for them, vote against them or abstain by leaving the chamber. I would urge the Senate to allow Senator O'Sullivan's motion to go ahead. It is a motion that should be able to be dealt with by senators as they deem fit, and to do otherwise would be so hypocritical and so contrary to what usually happens in this chamber.