Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Fisheries, Forestry and Conservation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I ask that government business notice of motion No. 1, varying the hours of meeting for the Senate this week, be taken as a formal motion.

Alan Ferguson (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Is there any objection to this motion being taken as formal?

Bob Brown (Tasmania, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Yes.

Alan Ferguson (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

There is an objection.

Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Fisheries, Forestry and Conservation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That, on Tuesday, 11 September 2007:

(a)

the hours of meeting shall be 2.30 pm to adjournment; and

(b)

the routine of business shall be:

(i)

questions without notice, and

(ii)

the items specified in standing order 57(1)(b)(iii) to (xii).

Bob Brown (Tasmania, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I seek leave to make a short statement.

Leave granted.

I thank the Senate, particularly Senator Abetz. The motion before us seeks to vary the sitting hours on the first Tuesday when we come back in September, to facilitate the visit of the Rt Hon. Stephen Harper, the Prime Minister of Canada, to address the House of Representatives. Senators have been asked to join that address. The matter I want to raise is the formal notice given to Australians that we would also be seeing a visit by Prime Minister Abe of Japan, to address the House of Representatives. That visit has fallen through. I want to find out from the government why that has happened. On the face of it, it appears that, in the run-up to the election, the Prime Minister of this country did not want the embarrassment of finding thousands of protesters outside this parliament protesting against the slaughter of Australian whales—including, this year, some 20 humpback whales—by the Japanese whaling fleet, which is currently preparing to set forth on its bloody mission from Tokyo into Australian waters off Antarctica in the coming summer.

Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Fisheries, Forestry and Conservation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I raise a point of order. The motion that is being sought is dealing only with a visit by Prime Minister Harper. We can ask why other prime ministers and other people are not visiting but, with great respect, I think we should confine our comments to those which are relevant.

Alan Ferguson (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Minister, Senator Brown sought leave to make a statement, so he does not need to speak directly to the motion that is before the chair.

Bob Brown (Tasmania, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

And I will be brief. The Prime Minister of Australia, John Howard, did not want to be embarrassed by thousands of protesters outside of this parliament, in the run-up to an election, as Prime Minister Abe addressed the parliament inside. He did not want to have to speak to Prime Minister Abe about the slaughter of Australian whales in Australian waters before their migration north along Australian coasts. Next year we will have fewer humpback whales not only because of Prime Minister Abe’s backing of the slaughter but also because of Prime Minister Howard’s failure to take any action to prevent it, such as in the International Court of Justice.

Prime Minister Abe is having trouble at home; this arrangement was convenient for him. Prime Minister Howard did not want to face the embarrassment of his failure to protect Australia’s whales against this slaughter by the Japanese whaling fleet in front of the Australian populace in the run-up to the election. The question I put to the government is: why isn’t Prime Minister Helen Clark, of New Zealand, invited to address this parliament? Are we to see only right-wing, conservative prime ministers from around the world addressing the parliament? Why not our neighbour? Why not the long-serving prime minister of our neighbouring country, New Zealand? When will she get to address this parliament—or is it only people who have views consistent with those of Prime Minister Howard who get the honour? I think it is time that we had some independent way of judging who comes to address the House of Representatives. I think we could be more eclectic about it rather than having this selective request from Prime Minister Howard.

Marise Payne (NSW, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Payne interjecting—

Bob Brown (Tasmania, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Prime Minister Howard makes all appointments, Senator, on a political basis. This is another example of the political use of this parliament. We need to have a more expansive view taken on behalf of the Australian people as to who comes to address the House of Representatives.

Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Fisheries, Forestry and Conservation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I seek leave to make a brief statement.

Leave granted.

The issue that is before the Senate is in relation to Prime Minister Harper’s visit, and what we have just witnessed is an abuse of the process to try to make some cheap political points. In relation to the comment that only right-wing conservatives address the parliament, under the prime ministership of John Howard we have had that right-wing conservative Bill Clinton and that right-wing conservative Tony Blair address our parliament. What a joke! How ridiculous and stupid to make those sorts of assertions.

When the invitation was made to the Prime Minister of Japan, we knew that humpbacks were going to be migrating north at the time and we knew that whaling was an issue. In recent times, our environment ministers, in particular Malcolm Turnbull and Ian Campbell, have been champions in this area on the world scene. We all know why the Prime Minister of Japan is not coming. He has had to decline our invitation because of certain matters domestically within Japan. We knew about the whaling season. The whales did not change their migratory patterns because of the impending visit by a Japanese prime minister. We knew about the whaling issues before the invitations were extended and it is simply because of the position the Prime Minister of Japan finds himself in that this visit is no longer taking place. To try to spin some sort of conspiracy theory out of this shows why the Greens should never be given the balance of power in this place.

Question agreed to.