Coalition backs inquiry looking into Australia's political donations system
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Version 0 of 1. The government is poised to send a reference to the joint standing committee on electoral matters requiring a fresh look at Australia’s donations and disclosure system after negotiations with key Senate crossbenchers and the ALP. The special minister of state, Scott Ryan, has signalled he will ask the committee to examine the question of foreign donations, fundraising, and activity by third parties, reporting by March. While negotiations were still underway on Tuesday night with Labor and other key stakeholders, the new inquiry is expected to be confirmed by the Turnbull government on Wednesday. The likelihood of imminent agreement has prompted the Nick Xenophon Team to withdraw a motion it wanted to push through the Senate calling for an inquiry foreign political donations; sources of private (including corporate and union donations) and public funding and contribution limits and caps; alternative funding practices including consideration of comparative overseas models operating in Canada and the UK; transparency, accountability and reporting measures, and potential limits on election expenses. The NXT has been pushing for cross bench involvement in the new donations inquiry, and One Nation has also signalled it wants to push the donations issue in the wake of last week’s political controversy that culminated in the resignation of the Labor senator Sam Dastyari from the Labor front bench. The government has agreed with that request. The renewed push to examine donations follows a high octane parliamentary day on Tuesday, where the government came to terms with Labor on its $6bn omnibus savings bill, and the Turnbull government unveiled the details of its proposed same sex marriage plebiscite. To reach final agreement on the savings measures, the Coalition agreed to dump its baby bonus, despite the initiative being part of the agreement between the Liberal and National parties, and Labor offered to limit access to the family tax benefit-A supplement for families with adjusted taxable incomes below $80,000. The government says it will press on with plans to try and abolish an energy supplement for new recipients of various payments, which would mean a cut in a range of benefits for people living below the poverty line, but it has accepted Labor’s refusal to allow any cuts to Newstart or the pension. Cabinet met on Monday night to thrash out the procedural steps associated with the marriage equality plebiscite. The government has resolved to allow public funding of the yes and no cases, despite strong resistance to that eventuality from moderates, who believe that concession will kill the plebiscite. The procedural elements were put to the Coalition party room on Tuesday. During the discussion the National senator from Queensland, Barry O’Sullivan, and the assistant minister for vocational education and skills, Karen Andrews, expressed objection to electorate-level data being reported after the plebiscite, on the basis the results might embarrass members. The Victorian Liberal Russell Broadbent countered that MPs needed to understand their responsibilities as parliamentarians, which meant sometimes taking positions that their constituents didn’t agree with. Partyroom sources told Guardian Australia Broadbent told the meeting he did not support indefinite detention on Nauru and Manus Island, yet he understood a large majority of his constituents did. The former prime minister Tony Abbott told the meeting parliamentarians would need to respect the national vote. There was also a clash between Victorian Liberal MP Tim Wilson and the prime minister, after Wilson objected to being interrupted by the prime minister. Wilson later apologised. The attorney general, George Brandis, and the special minister of state, Scott Ryan, confirmed the plebiscite would be held on 11 February and would ask Australians: “Should the law be changed to allow same-sex couples to be married?” The government will fund the yes and the no cases to the tune of $7.5m, and the campaigns will be administered by two committees of 10 people: five parliamentarians, two from the government, two from the opposition and one crossbencher; and five citizens. But the decision to publicly fund the campaigns appears likely to force Labor’s hand in opposing the plebiscite. “Let me be unequivocal. I think the plebiscite is a bad idea,” the Labor leader Bill Shorten told reporters on Tuesday. If Labor resolves to oppose the plebiscite when parliament resumes after a looming three week break, the proposal will lack the requisite parliamentary support to become a reality. One Coalition MP, Dean Smith, said on Tuesday he would oppose the bill enabling the plebiscite. The government did not rule out on Tuesday trying to work up a plebiscite without the foundation of enabling legislation, but both the prime minister, Malcolm Turnbull, and the attorney-general attempted to pressure Labor into supporting the government’s proposal. “The ball is now in Mr Shorten’s court because as I said before, he is the one person who now stands between the Australian people and their right to have the say that they want to have on this important social question, and he is also the one person who stands between gay Australians and their capacity to be admitted to the institution of marriage, which is something I strongly favour,” Brandis told reporters. |