Senator Heffernan to move on the next day of sitting:

That the Select Committee on Agricultural and Related Industries be authorised to hold a public meeting during the sitting of the Senate on Wednesday, 18 November 2009, from 4 pm, to take evidence for the committee’s inquiry into food production in Australia.

Senator Fisher to move on the next day of sitting:

That the Select Committee on the National Broadband Network be authorised to hold a private meeting otherwise than in accordance with standing order 33(1) during the sitting of the Senate on Thursday, 19 November 2009, from 5 pm.

Senator Fisher to move on the next day of sitting:

(1)

That there be laid on the table by the Ministers representing the Minister for Education and the Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations, no later than 3 pm on Thursday, 19 November 2009, copies of any bilateral intergovernmental agreement entered into, or final text agreed, between the Commonwealth Government and any referring state government or any territory government, in relation to the Fair Work Amendment (State Referrals and Other Measures) Bill 2009.

(2)

That a copy of the final text of each such agreement proposed to be entered into between the Commonwealth Government and any referring state government or any territory government on or after 3 pm on Thursday, 19 November 2009, be laid on the table within 24 hours of the final text being agreed.

(3)

That a copy of each such signed agreement entered into between the Commonwealth Government and any referring state government or any territory government on or after 3 pm on Thursday, 19 November 2009, be laid on the table within 24 hours of the agreement being signed.

Senator Birmingham to move on the next day of sitting:

That the time for the presentation of the report of the Environment, Communications and the Arts References Committee on sustainable management by the Commonwealth of water resources be extended to 3 February 2010.

Senator Birmingham to move on the next day of sitting:

That the time for the presentation of the report of the Environment, Communications and the Arts References Committee on the impact of mining operations on the Murray-Darling Basin be extended to 26 November 2009.

Senator Birmingham to move on the next day of sitting:

That the Environment, Communications and the Arts References Committee be authorised to hold a public meeting during the sitting of the Senate on Thursday, 19 November 2009, from 12.45 pm to 2 pm, to take evidence for the committee’s inquiry into the impact of mining operations on the Murray-Darling Basin.

Senator Birmingham to move on the next day of sitting:

That the order of the Senate of 29 October 2009 referring a matter to the Environment, Communications and the Arts References Committee on Australia Post’s treatment of injured and ill workers, be varied as follows:

Omit paragraph (a), substitute:

“(a)   allegations that injured staff have been forced back to work in inappropriate duties before they have recovered from workplace injuries;”.

Senators Barnett, Colbeck and Parry to move on the next day of sitting:

That the Senate—

(a)

notes:

(i)

the Australian Technical College Northern Tasmania (ATCNT) has been a highly successful model of education for students who wish to learn a trade and complete their Tasmanian Certificate of Education,

(ii)

the ATCNT, with campuses in Launceston and Burnie, is currently set to close on 31 December 2009 with the loss of 35 staff jobs and the displacement of more than 270 students,

(iii)

the options being offered to students for 2010 by the Tasmanian Government are in no way comparable to current courses offered by the ATCNT and further place at risk the education and employment prospects of students,

(iv)

the Federal Government has invested more than $26 million for the establishment and operation of the ATCNT, including $14 million on the building of the Launceston and Burnie facilities,

(v)

the outstanding performance of the ATCNT in its first 3 years of operation including, winning more than 40 awards for students and staff, as well as the 2007 Tasmanian and Australian School Based Apprentice of the Year and being named the 2009 Registered Training Organisation of the Year for Tasmania, and

(vi)

the ATCNT has achieved a retention rate of 95 per cent between Year 11 and Year 12 and a 94 per cent success rate for completing students in securing full-time employment; and

(b)

calls on the Government to support the ongoing operation of the Australian Technical College Northern Tasmania.

Senator Siewert to move on the next day of sitting:

That the Senate—

(a)

notes:

(i)

that Thursday, 19 November 2009, is World Toilet Day – a day to celebrate the importance of sanitation and raise awareness for the world’s population who do not have access to toilets and proper sanitation,

(ii)

that 2.5 billion people worldwide are without access to proper sanitation, risking their health, stripping their dignity and killing 1.8 million people (mostly children) a year,

(iii)

a lack of proper sanitation is the world’s biggest cause of malnutrition and infection, causing diseases such as diarrhoea, cholera, typhoid and worm infections that kill 5 000 children each day,

(iv)

that clean toilets contribute to poverty eradication by protecting one’s health and ability to work,

(v)

that safe collection and treatment of human waste and other various wastewaters protects drinking water sources and eco-systems, creating clean and healthy living environments, particularly in urban areas,

(vi)

the Millennium Development Goals (supported by all parties in the Australian Parliament) cannot be reached unless sanitation conditions are rapidly improved, and

(vii)

the upcoming Global Framework for Action on Water and Sanitation meeting in Washington in April 2010 is an opportunity for global support of the sanitation policy leadership of the United Kingdom, Dutch and Australian Governments; and

(b)

calls on the Government to:

(i)

invest via its aid program in programs and projects aimed at improving sanitation levels, increasing the number of public toilets and improving their cleanliness and accessibility,

(ii)

ensure that it plays a constructive, proactive role at the highest ministerial level at the Global Framework for Action on Water and Sanitation meeting, and

(iii)

fast-track the development of sanitation policy by disaggregating sanitation spending from water spending in its budget reporting on official development aid.

Senator Milne to move on the next day of sitting:

(1)

That the Senate:

(a)

recalls that the:

(i)

return to order motion moved on 16 September 2009 seeking a map of Australian forest cover (using the Kyoto definition of forest) for each year since 1990, at the highest available resolution, in any widely used GIS format, to be tabled by 26 October 2009, was supported, and

(ii)

Government tabled a response which said ‘The Government is pursing this matter however we are currently unable to satisfy the timeline for the production of these documents owing to the inter-departmental consultations that the order has required’; and

(b)

notes that:

(i)

9 weeks have now passed since the motion was supported, and

(ii)

scrutiny, of the forest cover maps is essential for consideration of the Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme bills.

(2)

That there be laid on the table, no later than 4 pm on 19 November 2009, a map of Australian forest cover (using the Kyoto definition of forest) for each year since 1990, at the highest available resolution, in any widely used GIS format.

Senator Milne to move on the next day of sitting:

That the Senate—

(a)

notes that:

(i)

neither the former Howard Government nor the Rudd Government has implemented the first recommendation of the 2007 Standing Committee on Rural and Regional Affairs and Transport Committee report, Australia’s future oil supply and alternative transport fuels, namely, that Geoscience Australia, the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and the Department of the Treasury reassess both the official estimates of future oil supply and the ‘early peak’ arguments and report to the Government on the probabilities and risks involved, comparing early mitigation scenarios with business as usual,

(ii)

of the nine recommendations of that report, only recommendation 6 relating to incentives for fuel efficient vehicles have even been considered let alone addressed,

(iii)

in the week beginning 8 November 2009, the International Energy Agency (IEA) issued its annual ‘World Energy Outlook’, predicting that global oil demand is forecast to rise from 85 million barrels per day in 2008 to 105 million barrels per day in 2030, and

(iv)

a whistleblower at the IEA has claimed ‘it has been deliberately underplaying a looming shortage for fear of triggering panic buying’ and that a ‘senior official claims the US has played an influential role in encouraging the watchdog to underplay the rate of decline from existing oil fields while overplaying the chances of finding new reserves’; and

(b)

calls on the Government immediately to develop a national plan to respond to the challenge of peak oil and Australia’s dependence on imported foreign oil.

Senator Bob Brown to move on the next day of sitting:

To move (contingent on business being called on 3 February 2010)—That so much of the standing orders be suspended as would prevent the senator moving—That:

(a)

Senator Bob Brown may immediately move a motion on the involvement and deployment of Australian troops in Afghanistan; and

(b)

the motion have precedence over all other business until determined.

Senator Milne to move on the next day of sitting:

That the Senate—

(a)

notes:

(i)

statements from the Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research (Senator Carr) in support of freedom of expression for scientists,

(ii)

the Minister’s stated support for the publication of peer-reviewed research, even if it has negative implications for government policy, and

(iii)

Dr Megan Clarke’s statement that the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) will work with Dr Clive Spash to ensure that his paper analysing the efficacy of emissions trading systems meets CSIRO internal review standards and the guidelines of the Public Research Agency Charter between the CSIRO and the Federal Government; and

(b)

calls on the Minister to:

(i)

immediately give effect to his support for the publication of peer-reviewed research by acknowledging that the internal review standards of the CSIRO and guidelines of the charter are being applied to effect censorship, and

(ii)

table Dr Spash’s uncensored research paper in the Senate.

Senator Hanson-Young to move on the next day of sitting:

That the Senate calls on the Australian Government to conduct an audit of where Australian funds are being used to support Indonesia in asylum seeker management and people smuggling efforts, and subsequent compliance with international human rights standards, with particular reference to:

(a)

detention facilities and conditions;

(b)

operational equipment and training; and

(c)

the interception of suspected illegal entry vessels.