Pauline Hanson (Queensland, Pauline Hanson's One Nation Party) Share this | Hansard source

[by video link] I raise that point because voting is the heart of our democracy, and, when a person votes, we have to know they are the right person that is voting. What we find at elections is that people get fined if they don't vote. We don't seem to fine people who are crossed off on the electoral rolls more than once, because we can't identify them. What I'm saying here is about not requesting a person's details or asking them to show identification such as a driver's licence, which most people carry, or maybe a Medicare card or even a credit card, to show that that is actually the person voting. When we go to the bank, we must show identification if we want to open up an account. When we go to purchase a mobile phone or a SIM card, we must show three forms of identification—just to get a mobile phone. Yet—and this has been the argument of a lot of Australians—we don't have to show identification when we go to vote.

It is a known fact that a lot of people go around from booth to booth and vote multiple times. Minister, when will you act on making sure that people have to show identification, rather than saying, 'We're working on it?' This has been going on for years and years and years. And I must point out to the people of Australia that it was the Newman government that introduced voter identification, but as soon as the Labor Party got elected in Queensland, under Annastacia Palaszczuk, the first piece of legislation she put forward was to get rid of voter identification, and I've got to ask the question: why? So, Minister, the people of Australia don't want 'We're looking into it.' This has been happening for years and years. There is fraud going on in our voting system. When are you going to take it seriously enough to make sure voters show identification? And will it be for the next federal election?