Michaelia Cash (WA, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations) Share this | Hansard source

Quite frankly, Seinfeld could not have scripted the last 24 hours of the Albanese government! To say that the last 24 hours has been chaotic is an absolute understatement, and that is why the coalition is supporting the motion that is being moved by the Australian Greens. We will, of course, be amending it, and I foreshadow an amendment. Senator Ayres talked a big game. I give him that. He talked a big game. That's fair enough. He talked a big game. He does that well. But let's look at what Senator Ayres actually said when you break it down.

He talked about those of us failing a character test. Senator Ayres, I put to you that the Prime Minister fails the character test on these bases: he fails the test when it comes to scrutiny; he fails the test when it comes to transparency; he fails the test when it comes to accountability. Why do I say that? Look at what the Prime Minister said to the Australian people. The Australian people should reflect on what the Prime Minister told them before the election. Before the election, when Mr Albanese was in promise-making mode—post the election, we're in a very different mode—he told the Australian people this: if he and the Australian Labor Party were elected to office, he and his ministers would deliver transparency, integrity and accountability in everything they do. Well, I have to say, the last 24 hours of this government have shown that that is blatantly false. Actions in this case, Prime Minister, speak louder than words. Anyone who has not seen the footage of Minister O'Neill this morning running from the press in the press gallery, running away—all they wanted to ask her were questions in relation to this legislation, the first one being, as Senator Patterson opened last night with: why is this legislation urgent?

I would have thought the Australian people would think that is a reasonable question, given we are being asked to rush it through the parliament today under a guillotine—and, for those who don't know what a guillotine means, it means we have, as the opposition and the Australian Greens, no opportunity on behalf of the Australian people to scrutinise this legislation. So one would think, to a simple question by Senator Patterson last night in committee and the journalists today to Senator O'Neill asking why this legislation is urgent, Senator O'Neill and the officials last night could clearly articulate a reason. This is where the problem lies, because they couldn't. They said to us, 'Trust us.' The last time the Australian people trusted the Albanese government, they were let down miserably.

When it comes to secrecy, when it comes to a lack of transparency, when it comes to a lack of accountability, which is what this motion moved by the Australian Greens goes to—that is, giving the Australian Senate on behalf of the Australian people the opportunity to properly scrutinise this legislation, because the government has failed to articulate any sort of urgency associated with it—Dennis Shanahan, in his article of 25 March—quite frankly, he sums it up: 'Labor's transparency vow lies bleeding from a thousand cuts.'

This is the reality for the Australian people: the Prime Minister and the Attorney-General trumpeted before the election that if you voted for them you were heralding in a new era of transparency, but you all need to wake up. The Australian Labor Party run the Senate and House of Representatives like a shop floor. That is it. They're the union in control, and guess what? The rest of us don't have a say. They will use any form of tactic to silence us. And in silencing us—Mr Albanese, shame on you, because you silence the Australian people! That is the history of the Australian Labor Party: 'Nothing to see here.' If you bully people enough, if you intimidate them enough, they will eventually capitulate and fall over. Well, guess what? We are not going to do that. We are going to stand firm on behalf of the Australian people. We will support this motion and we will ensure that this bill gets the proper scrutiny it requires because, as I said, you've said it's not urgent.