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

As mover and replier I'll make very few points. A number of crossbench senators made the statement that the people elected the government, and they used that as an explanation of why they don't wish to support the no-confidence motion. I say this to them: yes, the people elected this government, but that does not provide an unfettered right. That does not provide an unqualified right. It provides a responsibility. It gives a responsibility. What we have seen this week, what all of us have observed, is a party and a government that have walked away from that responsibility—a party and a government that have no regard for the heavy, weighty, and honourable responsibility that is conferred after winning an election. What we know is that their hatred for each other is greater than their love for this country. What we know this week is that enmity has triumphed over responsibility. The reality is that Australians have no confidence in this government, and neither should this parliament.