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Malcolm Turnbull presents marriage equality bill to parliament – question time
Pauline Hanson calls for a total halt to immigration – politics live
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Hanson starts with a reminder that when she left the parliament last time, she told the chamber she would be back. Other members shouted “no you won’t”.
Hanson’s mob has left but she stays to listen to McCarthy.
She says there have been many legal battles since then, including a stint in maximum security. She says she was Australia’s first political prisoner.
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I’m back. But I am not alone.
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McCarthy is talking about her path to the senate. She says she is here to represent not just her people but for all people, Indigenous and non-Indigenous, migrants and all in the Northern Territory.
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Underline. Contrast.
Hanson is sitting next to David Leyonhjelm and in front of her fellow One Nation senators Malcolm Roberts and Brian Burston. Last time I covered her first speech, Labor and Coalition members boycotted. They have not done so today. Their benches are not full but not empty either.
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So there was no words on Indigenous people, the previous offenders. The Asian community remain a menace, as do of course Muslims. She has a corner on common sense and good old fashioned values, in her mind. The rest of us are just kidding ourselves.
The galleries are starting to fill in the senate with families and friends of both Pauline Hanson and Malarndirri McCarthy.
Stay tuned for Malarndirri McCarthy. Her mob are sitting in the opposite stalls. They give her applause as she opens with her Indigenous language.
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The Jscem terms of reference relating to political donations, truth in political advertising , electronic voting and foreign donations
Hanson reckons she comes from a breed taught morals, values, common sense. And there are some final quotes which I will check before I print because I was a little gobsmacked. That’s it, everyone comes up to congratulate her. Minus the Greens of course.
The special minister of state, Scott Ryan, has released the reference to the joint standing committee on electoral matters (Jscem).
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Referral by Special Minister of State Senator the Hon Scott Ryan to the Joint Standing Committee on Electoral Matter
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That the following matters be referred to the Joint Standing Committee on Electoral Matters for inquiry and report:
Hanson thanks her kids, her families and controversial staffer James Ashby. She notes Ashby has been kicked around by the establishment, as she has.
1. All aspects of the 2016 Federal election and matters related thereto, and without limiting the scope of the committee’s inquiry, with particular reference to:
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a. The application of provisions requiring authorisation of electoral material to all forms of communication to voters;
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b. The potential applicability of ‘truth in advertising’ provisions to communication to voters including third-party carriage services;
The Greens senators all leave together during Pauline Hanson's first speech #senate @gabriellechan @GuardianAus pic.twitter.com/1bdZncvaWz
c. The options available to Parliament to ensure consistent application of disclosure rules to and the regulation of all entities undertaking campaign activities; and,
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d. The potential application of new technology to voting, scrutiny and counting, with particular reference to its application to remote voting, ADF personnel on deployment and supporting vision-impaired voters.
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2. The extent of donations and contributions from foreign sources, persons, entities and foreign-owned subsidiaries to political parties, associated entities and other third parties and entities undertaking campaign activities, and the options available to Parliament to regulate these.
"I'm Back" Pauline Hanson gives her first speech in the senate @gabriellechan @GuardianAus #politicslive pic.twitter.com/3wvDD8b7Pa
3. The current donations, contributions, expenditure and disclosure regime, its application and timeliness and alternative approaches available to Parliament.
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4. The extent to which fundraising and expenditure by third parties is conducted in concert with registered political parties and the applicability and utilisation of tax deductibility by entities involved in campaign activities.
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5. Any matters related to the terms outlined above.
Pauline Hanson says she will not do a Derryn Hinch and speak for 45 minutes. She says she has six years so she has plenty of time – which will make the Greens cringe.
In considering these matters, the Committee is encouraged to consider previous inquiries and reports of past committees, regulatory developments implemented by States and Territories and recent determinations of the High Court with respect to these.
Oh no, they have left.
The Committee is requested to provide a report in respect of item 1a by December 1, 2016, and item 2 by March 3, 2017.
(It looks like the Coalition is going to have a proper go at the issues at the start of this inquiry. Let’s see where it goes.)
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FYI.
Both parents’ incomes should be taken into account. Make it fair with both custody and child support and most parents will take on their responsibility, she says.
Treasurer @ScottMorrisonMP lists "Labor's top 10 achievements of the last 12 months" #auspol pic.twitter.com/CGcpOh9Fvj
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Labour are AGAIN trying to FOI George Brandis diary to see if he lied about meeting with LGBT groups #auspol pic.twitter.com/ayrWYn2kvY
This development is in regard to the ongoing stoush between Labor’s Mark Dreyfus and George Brandis over access to the attorney general’s diary. Brandis lost a case last week and so Dreyfus is trying to get information again.
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As we await first speeches, I urge you to read Katharine Murphy’s piece on Pauline Hanson ahead of her speech.
Understanding Hanson’s context is simple enough. But we face another challenge. The problem is not so much comprehending Pauline. Her shtick is now reasonably familiar. The contemporary problem is how we engage constructively with Hansonism, and by constructively I actually mean deconstructively, which is our core business as journalists: calling out the snake oil, attempting to protect people from being manipulated.
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The conscientious objectors clause
On to family law. Discriminatory and biased, she says. I referred to it in the last first speech, says Hanson. If anything it has got worse.
Paul Karp has an exclusive regarding the plebiscite:
Men suicide and women make frivolous claims. We will continue to see murders due to “sheer frustration”, she says.
The government will propose new protections for “conscientious objectors” to same-sex marriage, which marriage equality advocates fear could allow civil celebrants, registrars and even bakers and florists to refuse to serve gay weddings.
According to briefing notes on the plebiscite prepared for the Coalition party room, seen by Guardian Australia, the legislation would allow “conscientious objectors” to reject gay weddings, an exemption more extensive than merely allowing religious leaders to refuse to conduct them.
The prospect of extensive exemptions to discrimination law would provide a further reason for Labor and others to block the plebiscite and and could split the yes vote in the plebiscite if it went ahead.
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18 years in the making. Coming up.
Hanson supports the Coalition policy not wanting school leavers to go straight on to welfare. Teach them how to apply for a job, she says.
One Nation promo for Hanson speech says it is '18 years in the making' #auspol pic.twitter.com/qFwDrMqPpP
(That might be news to some of the kids in her supporters’ small towns.)
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She advocates no more welfare payments for mothers with a second child. Get a job and learn to look after it, she says.
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From earlier today, Natalie Kotsios of the Weekly Times reports National MP Andrew Broad has said foreign investment thresholds in free-trade agreements should be reconsidered and brought down to $15m.
The government brought the Foreign Investment Review Board thresholds down to $15m for agricultural land and $55m for agribusiness.
But exemptions built into free-trade deals with the US, New Zealand and Chile remain, for whom the threshold is $1.094bn.
“Some say you can’t renegotiate a deal but I think that [the threshold] is an anomaly and if we’re going to be true to ourselves, we need to be consistent with everyone,” Mr Broad said.
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The Nationals’ MP for Lyne, David Gillespie, is giving the reply, defending Turnbull and the Coalition.
Meanwhile in the Senate, I hear whispers the government is seeking to extend the sitting hours of the Senate on Thursday afternoon after a couple of days of filibustering.
