Karen Grogan (SA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

Thank you to Senator Lambie for this reference for us to have a little debate. There were a range of things in there, but I got the general sense that you were really wanting to talk about electoral reform. When we talk about transparency, let's be really clear. We have talked about electoral reform for years. When the Joint Standing Committee on Electoral Matters first started to look at this, as it does after every election, we were very clear about the things that we were going to look at. We have a very longstanding commitment to sensible long-lasting electoral reform. In the time over the 2½ years since we came to government, those conversations have been ongoing. Senator Farrell has reached out across this chamber and had ongoing conversations.

We've held numerous hearings of the Join Standing Committee on Electoral Matters to inquire into people's perspectives and people's views. The committee worked exceptionally well together in doing that piece of work, in understanding what it was that wasn't working and in understanding what it was that we wanted to achieve. Some of the recommendations in there are exactly why we are where we are now. The notion that, just because you have a lot of money and just because you have a lot of resources, you can buy a seat in this chamber or a seat in the other chamber is not okay. That is not about the will of the people. That is not about people across this country being able to decide for themselves who they wish to have represent them in this chamber or in the other chamber. We can all stand around and talk about not agreeing with someone's views and not respecting different people's views. We should respect everyone's views in this chamber, because every last person in here has got here because they got enough votes to do so. These reforms are about making the system fairer. The reforms that have been put forward through tireless work from Senator Farrell are about fairness.

One of the things that is, I think, a little sad is the thought that the truth in political advertising bill won't gain support. I've had this conversation numerous times over the last couple of years. I come from the great state of South Australia, where we have had truth in electoral advertising laws since 1984. We do it quite well, especially when we look at other states. The fact that we're hearing that people across this chamber are not going to support the introduction of truth in political advertising is deeply alarming to me. I would have to ask the question: why would you not support that? I think you should really ask yourself that question. We see some great opportunity here to make our electoral system fairer and to even up the playing field so that no-one can spend large sums of money and that every donation that is provided into any political campaign is declared as quickly as possible for transparency and for clarity. That's so that when voters, the good people of this country, decide who they are going to vote for, they can see exactly whose money has been spent and exactly who is utilising what resources to help get their message out about why people should vote for them. So why some of our colleagues in this room think this is bad is totally beyond me.

We need to ensure transparency. We need to build faith, across the country, in how people get elected and how they campaign. We need to make sure that we are honest and transparent. These are things that we should all be aiming for. These are things that we should all be getting behind.

Any conversation that says this hasn't been consulted on is, frankly, misguided. I was on the Joint Standing Committee on Electoral Matters, and I can assure you: there were many meetings, many conversations and many witnesses called, and many senators from this chamber engaged in that process. It was a great process, very well chaired by Ms Thwaites from the other place. I would commend this reform— (Time expired)