Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

by leave—I move:

That today—

(a) the hours of meeting be 9.30 am till adjournment;

(b) the routine of business to be called on immediately be:

i. a condolence motion concerning the Honourable Moses Henry 'Moss' Cass

ii. valedictory statements relating to Senators Carr and McMahon

iii. a ministerial statement relating to the Women's Budget Statement 2022-23

iv. a motion concerning the situation in Ukraine

v. a message regarding an address by the His Excellency Mr Volodymyr Zelenskyy, President of Ukraine

vi. tabling (only) of committee reports and government responses

vii. notices of motion

viii. consideration of business of the Senate notice of motion no. 5 relating to the disallowance of the Industry Research and Development (Underwriting New Generation Investments Program) Instrument 2021 for not longer than 15 minutes, following which the question be put;

(c) the following bills be called on after the conclusion of consideration of the items in paragraph (b):

i. Treasury Laws Amendment (Cyclone and Flood Damage Reinsurance Pool) Bill 2022

ii. Treasury Laws Amendment (Cost of Living Support Other Measures) Bill 2022

iii. Excise Tariff Amendment (Cost of Living Support) Bill 2022

Customs Tariff Amendment (Cost of Living Support) Bill 2022

iv. Social Security Legislation Amendment (Streamlined Participation Requirements and Other Measures) Bill 2021

v. Social Services and Other Legislation Amendment (Pension Loans Scheme Enhancements) Bill 2021

vi. Social Security Amendment (Improved Child to Adult Transfer for Carer Payment and Carer Allowance) Bill 2022

vii. National Security Legislation Amendment (Comprehensive Review and Other Measures No. 1) Bill 2021

viii. Security Legislation Amendment (Critical Infrastructure Protection) Bill 2022

ix. National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Participant Service Guarantee and Other Measures) Bill 2021

x. Road Vehicle Standards (Consequential and Transitional Provisions) Amendment Bill 2022

xi. Australian Research Council Amendment Bill 2021

xii. Data Availability and Transparency Bill 2020

Data Availability and Transparency (Consequential Amendments) Bill 2020

xiii. Offshore Petroleum (Laminaria and Corallina Decommissioning Cost Recovery Levy) Bill 2021

Treasury Laws Amendment (Laminaria and Corallina Decommissioning Cost Recovery Levy) Bill 2021

xiv. Criminal Code Amendment (Firearms Trafficking) Bill 2022

xv. Aged Care and Other Legislation Amendment (Royal Commission Response No. 2) Bill 2021

(d) if consideration of the bills listed in paragraph (c) has not concluded within two hours, the questions on all remaining stages be put without debate;

(e) paragraph (d) operate as a limitation of debate under standing order 142;

(f) the Mitochondrial Donation Law Reform (Maeve's Law) Bill 2021 be called on after the conclusion of consideration of the bills listed in paragraph (c);

(g) the Senate adjourn without debate on the motion of a minister (following consideration of the Mitochondrial Donation Law Reform (Maeve's Law) Bill 2021).

I move:

That the question be now put.

Question agreed to.

Sue Lines (WA, Deputy-President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I am now going to put the question. Senator McAllister?

Jenny McAllister (NSW, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Cabinet Secretary) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Madam Deputy President, I rise to seek some indulgence from the chamber about the motion before us. I understand that there is a view from some senators that they seek some additional elements—

Sue Lines (WA, Deputy-President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator McAllister, you need leave to speak.

Jenny McAllister (NSW, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Cabinet Secretary) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My apologies. I seek leave of the chamber to make a brief contribution.

Leave granted.

I understand that some discussion about the program for today is taking place. I suppose I would make the observation that it is now Wednesday, we've been here since Monday, and it is regrettable that the government couldn't have progressed this a little more expeditiously. But I do understand that we're at a point now where we can deal with these matters.

Rex Patrick (SA, Independent) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

by leave—I'd just point out that there are over 15 bills that are being, effectively, rammed through the parliament. This motion has been circulated only in the last couple of minutes, so it's pretty ordinary conduct on behalf of the government to do this, and it's pretty undemocratic to ram this many bills through in an hour of desperation.

Pauline Hanson (Queensland, Pauline Hanson's One Nation Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I seek leave to make a short statement.

Sue Lines (WA, Deputy-President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Leave is granted for one minute.

Pauline Hanson (Queensland, Pauline Hanson's One Nation Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I'm not impressed at all with the government actually pushing this through. It would've had the support of the Labor Party to do this. Senator Patrick is right: there are about 15 bills that are being passed here. My grave concern is on one of them, the Offshore Petroleum (Laminaria and Corallina Decommissioning Cost Recovery Levy) Bill 2021. That has been stuffed up by government. The fact is that that is costing us $4 million a week, and that should actually be discussed in this parliament to see what is happening there.

These bills are going to be pushed through. Senators' statements have been wiped. Also, I've been told I can't do a budget reply speech tonight, because I'm being shut down. As the leader of a political party in this place, I am not being given the opportunity to give that speech tonight and speak on behalf of millions of people. I think that's disgusting.

You have shut down this parliament. You have not allowed enough sitting time to deal with your bills that needed to be dealt with before the election. This is not being representative of the people of this nation and it's a disgrace on the Liberal Party and the National Party to actually do it. (Time expired)

Sue Lines (WA, Deputy-President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I intend to put the motion. Senator Lambie, are you seeking—

Jacqui Lambie (Tasmania, Jacqui Lambie Network) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I seek leave to make a short statement.

Sue Lines (WA, Deputy-President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Leave is granted for one minute.

Jacqui Lambie (Tasmania, Jacqui Lambie Network) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

You've got 15 bills here. You're going to ram it through. We've got the Labor Party here that wants to win an election. Here we go. We've got the same same already. I'm sorry, I just can't distinguish between the two of you. If you get government, is this what it's going to look like? Are we going back to the same thing? Quite frankly, you might as well keep voting for the ones over there. You've got to be kidding here. You have got to be kidding. There are 15 bills here. You're in chaos over there. Some of us would like a reply this evening, and this is how we get treated. How disrespectful! Disrespectful!

I want Australians to know that you have got the same people here, and if you intend to vote for the red over here, you might as well vote for the two of them, because they are exactly the same. We're going to get the same crap in the next three years as we've gotten in the previous three years. It is absolutely shameful.

Sue Lines (WA, Deputy-President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator McKim, are you seeking leave?

Nick McKim (Tasmania, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I'm seeking leave to make a one-minute statement.

Sue Lines (WA, Deputy-President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

One minute, Senator McKim.

Nick McKim (Tasmania, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

This is no way to legislate and it's no way to run this Senate chamber. There are 20 pieces of legislation covered by this hours motion. They are going to be ultimately, inevitably rammed through without debate. A large number of them are extremely complex, complicated pieces of legislation and, in some cases, they have extremely complex and complicated amendments. I know that Senator Steele-John has particular concerns about the NDIS bill, which he has a number of complicated amendments to. I want to place on the record his and the Australian Greens' frustration that those amendments and amendments to other bills are going to be put through this place without adequate debate and the legislation is going to be gagged and put through without adequate scrutiny. Today is a sad day for the Senate.

The Depu:

The question is that the motion moved by Senator Birmingham be agreed to. I refer senators to standing order 57, which does not allow for divisions at this particular time of the program—

Sue Lines (WA, Deputy-President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you, Senator Patrick!—so, if there is a requirement for a division, it will have to be deferred. Under the current standing orders, because this motion hasn't been passed, there is no division, so the motion is now carried.

Senators, I have deferred that. This routine of business variation is now carried.

Lidia Thorpe (Victoria, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Shameful!

Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Just on the ruling, this motion was moved at the normal point in terms of the transition of debate in the Senate, immediately following the conclusion of a division. To accommodate the wishes of the crossbench to put opinions leave was granted. However, leave was granted in the midst of a motion that had already been moved for the question to be put, and so I would ask that the question be put in accordance with the motion that had been put to the chamber.

Sue Lines (WA, Deputy-President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

At the moment, because we are under the current standing order, we are actually at senators' statements. I appreciate you're attempting to move a motion. Under that part of the current program no divisions can take place. We agreed that when we put senators' statements in. However, I understand that a division can take place if leave is granted. Because we don't currently have any amendment before the chair we are at senators' statements. You can allow for a division if a senator seeks leave and that leave is agreed to.

Rex Patrick (SA, Independent) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I am just seeking clarification. Because no division is allowed I presume that we continue with the current program, is that correct?

Sue Lines (WA, Deputy-President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

That's correct—unless leave is sought.

Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Just to clarify, I understand you have taken advice and obviously the opposition will support the ruling that's based on the clerk's advice. As I understand it, the fact that this has not been voted on means we now return to the red unamended—the government will have to consider how it wishes to deal with that—which means we'd move to senators' statements now, unless the chamber gives Senator Birmingham leave for the division to occur. I would infer from the previous contributions that that is unlikely to occur.

Sue Lines (WA, Deputy-President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I am going to move to senators' statements. I am going to call Senator Bilyk because we are now at senators' statements—

Honourable senators interjecting—

Order! We are now at senators' statements. I understand Senator Bilyk has the call. I beg your pardon, Senator Bilyk. Senator Birmingham.

Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I will test the will of the chamber at least. I seek leave to have the division on the motion and then conclusion of those motions, that would be consequential to the initial motion, considered by the Senate.

Leave not granted.