Senate debates

Tuesday, 13 February 2018

Motions

Donations to Political Parties

3:49 pm

Photo of Lee RhiannonLee Rhiannon (NSW, Australian Greens) Share this | | Hansard source

I move:

That the Senate—

(a) notes that:

  (i) in McCloy v New South Wales (2015), the High Court found that prohibiting political donations from a certain industry was permissible if the prohibition was proportionate to the risk of actual or perceived corruption,

  (ii) a 2016 report from 350.org, found that fossil fuel companies would receive $7.7 billion in rebates and credits for the 2016-17 financial year, had made $3.7 million in political donations since the preceding election, and that this equated to $2,000 in rebates and credits for every $1 donated, and

  (iii) in 2016-17, the Liberal, National and Labor parties received at least $477,111 from Woodside Energy, Santos, the Minerals Council of Australia, Whitehaven Coal and Adani Mining; and

(b) calls on the Government to prohibit political donations from mineral resources or mining industry business entities and their industry representative organisations.

Photo of Scott RyanScott Ryan (President) Share this | | Hansard source

The question is that the motion moved by Senator Rhiannon be agreed to.