Fatima Payman (WA, Independent) Share this | Hansard source

My question is to the Special Minister of State, Minister Farrell. The proposed electoral donation reform bill contains some good measures, such as the lowering of the disclosure threshold. However, it’s obvious that this is a major party conspiracy to remove choice and diversity for the voters. Constitutional lawyer and professor emeritus at the University of Sydney Dr Anne Twomey has noted that an independent candidate with no infrastructure under this system would only be able to receive a maximum of $20,000 per donor per year, making it difficult to get elected, while a major party that has branches in the eight states and territories, a federal branch and associated entities could, over a three-year election cycle, receive as much as $2.56 million from a single donor. Minister, how can this be described as anything but a cynical attack on the diversity of the political landscape?