This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/live/2016/nov/08/plebiscite-bill-fails-politics-live-penny-wong-george-brandis

The article has changed 18 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 11 Version 12
Coalition to establish inquiry into section 18C of Racial Discrimination Act – question time live Coalition to establish inquiry into section 18C of Racial Discrimination Act – question time live
(35 minutes later)
4.18am GMT
04:18
I feel they should be singing...
4.13am GMT
04:13
I have a power of Bowers to share now...
4.12am GMT
04:12
A government question to assistant treasurer Kelly O’Dwyer: Is the Minister aware of any (Labor) threats to improving superannuation balances?
See Labor superannuation policy announced overnight.
4.10am GMT
04:10
Labor to Turnbull: Why did the PM decide to keep (Bob Day’s senate eligibility) information secret from the Australian people? Surely the Australian people have a right to know that there was doubt over whether the composition of the Australian Senate was constitutional?
Turnbull says the government proceeded:
on the Bob Day matter.
The suggestion that the special minister of state should have gone off half-cocked without knowing the facts, without knowing the law, that’s the sort of incompetence you would expect from a Labor government.
4.06am GMT
04:06
Treasurer Scott Morrison gets a government question on alternative (Labor) threats to Australia’s AAA credit rating.
4.05am GMT
04:05
Shorten to Turnbull: the PM has claimed he wasn’t personally aware there was a potential issue under section 44 of the Constitution in relation to former Senator Day until around mid-August this year. If this was the case, did the PM or his office seek advice from his department or other sources about whether and when to make this information public? If not, why not? How could the PM keep something like this secret?
Turnbull goes through the previously published timeline and says special minister of state Scott Ryan was getting appropriate legal advice.
The government proceeded diligently, carefully on a complex matter, considered diligently and sought advice and when that advice was received, gave it to the president of the Senate and as a consequence the matter has been referred to the High Court.
3.58am GMT
03:58
Just for a change, the government has moved to a CFMEU question for trade minister Steve Ciobo.
Labor to Turnbull: Can the PM confirm that the Minister for Finance was aware before the election the bank account nominated to receive rental payments for Senator Day’s electoral office was linked to Bob Day? Isn’t it clear from the statement of theFinance Minister that the Government knew before the election that the deal was completely inappropriate? The statement does not go to when the PM was personally aware of these circumstances and I ask him to advise the House?
Turnbull:
The fact that there was an issue relating to Senator Day’s office was drawn to the attention of my chief of staff by Senator Ryan on 18th of August, as set out in his statement, and my chief of staff was asked by Senator Ryan if Senator Day sought to raise the matter with him or my office, to refer it to him. Senator Ryan passed on the substance of that conversation to me shortly there after, some days after, and that was the beginning of my awareness that there was any issue about Senator Day’s office.
3.53am GMT
03:53
Labor asks Turnbull more details about when he and the finance minister Mathias Cormann knew of some of the arrangements around Bob Day’s electoral office.
Malcolm Turnbull again says the previous statements answer the question.
3.50am GMT
03:50
Plibersek asks a question regarding whether there was a connection between education minister Simon Birmingham knew about the North East Vocational college. To visualise the point, Labor MPs hold up photos of Birmingham. It looks as though he is on the site of the training college.
Speaker Smith gets upset and cancels Labor’s question.
The government gets another question, which Christopher Pyne uses to give the new Labor senator Kimberley Kitching.
3.45am GMT
03:45
Government question to Malcolm Turnbull: How will the government’s migration legislation amendment regional processing cohort bill protect our borders? Are there any alternative views?
Malcolm Turnbull:
We know theLeader of the Opposition is giving in again to the Left of his party, just as Kevin Rudd did in 2008 and 2009. Mr Speaker, he talks about a unity ticket, he talks about being tough on borders. The fact is he trivialises it, talking about people smuggling as tourism.
3.42am GMT3.42am GMT
03:4203:42
Politicians play politicsPoliticians play politics
Tanya Plibersek to Malcolm Turnbull: I refer to reports that the Government awarded a college linked to former Senator Bob Day a $1.84m grant despite the fact he only asked for $1.4m. Why did the college give the college almost $500,000 more than was requested?Tanya Plibersek to Malcolm Turnbull: I refer to reports that the Government awarded a college linked to former Senator Bob Day a $1.84m grant despite the fact he only asked for $1.4m. Why did the college give the college almost $500,000 more than was requested?
Turnbull flicks the question to defence industry minister Christopher Pyne.Turnbull flicks the question to defence industry minister Christopher Pyne.
Pyne starts up:Pyne starts up:
It’s absolutely remarkable, Mr Speaker, that the Labor Party, the party of the home insulation scheme, the party of the school halls debacle, the party of the cash for clunkers, FuelWatch as the Deputy PM points out, GroceryWatch, would have the gall to ask this government.It’s absolutely remarkable, Mr Speaker, that the Labor Party, the party of the home insulation scheme, the party of the school halls debacle, the party of the cash for clunkers, FuelWatch as the Deputy PM points out, GroceryWatch, would have the gall to ask this government.
There was absolutely no financial connection between former Senator Bob Day and the North East Vocational Educational College. It went through all the normal processes that such a grant would go through, and was awarded on its merits, and Mr Speaker, the Labor Party stands condemned for trying to play politics with it.There was absolutely no financial connection between former Senator Bob Day and the North East Vocational Educational College. It went through all the normal processes that such a grant would go through, and was awarded on its merits, and Mr Speaker, the Labor Party stands condemned for trying to play politics with it.
3.38am GMT3.38am GMT
03:3803:38
Fifth government question on border security to justice minister Michael Keenan: Will the minister update the house on the threat of terrorism? What is the government doing to keep our community safe and the Brisbane community safe and our borders secure?Fifth government question on border security to justice minister Michael Keenan: Will the minister update the house on the threat of terrorism? What is the government doing to keep our community safe and the Brisbane community safe and our borders secure?
3.36am GMT3.36am GMT
03:3603:36
Labor to assistant treasurer Kelly O’Dwyer: The collapse of former Senator Day’s building empire has left hundreds of people who are building houses facing an uncertain future with the prospect they will lose not only their savings, but their dream homes. Can the minister confirm that the Tax Office and the National Australia Bank will be paid ahead of these people in the liquidation of Bob Day’s building empire, and that no action has been taken to recover former Senator Day’s donations of over $2 million to Family First, a party which preferenced the Liberal Party at the last election.Labor to assistant treasurer Kelly O’Dwyer: The collapse of former Senator Day’s building empire has left hundreds of people who are building houses facing an uncertain future with the prospect they will lose not only their savings, but their dream homes. Can the minister confirm that the Tax Office and the National Australia Bank will be paid ahead of these people in the liquidation of Bob Day’s building empire, and that no action has been taken to recover former Senator Day’s donations of over $2 million to Family First, a party which preferenced the Liberal Party at the last election.
O’Dwyer says check out the corporations act because she cannot talk about individuals.O’Dwyer says check out the corporations act because she cannot talk about individuals.
3.34am GMT
03:34
Labor to Turnbull: Documents tabled in the Senate confirm that the Minister for Finance agreed to back pay rent on Bob Day’s electorate office from 1 July 2015. More than a year before the rent was legally required under the lease. The question is why? Why did the Minister for Finance attempt to back pay over $30,000 in rent when the Commonwealth was not legally obligated to do so, and, no, PM, the matter is not fully dealt with in the Minister for Finance’s statement.
Turnbull says the matter is dealt with in the finance minister’s statement.
Another question to Scott Morrison relating to the importance of balancing the budget.
3.32am GMT
03:32
Barnaby Joyce: it's not just the people who come in, it's the things they might be carrying
Warren Entsch to Barnaby Joyce: Will the Deputy PM outline to the house how the Indigenous ranger program assisting to protect Australia from biosecurity threats and is the Deputy PM aware of any alternative policies?
Joyce notes:
the $12.4m to be put to the Indigenous rangers program that is so vitally important, how we keep our borders strong and protected. We note also in the member’s electorate...you can see the boats leaving Papua New Guinea.
BOATS! Joyce mentions screw fly and foot-and-mouth disease.
But it’s very important to remember that it’s not just the people who come in, it is the things that they might be carrying which would cause our nation such a catastrophic outcome if these diseases were to outbreak.
3.26am GMT
03:26
Third question on refugees to foreign minister Julie Bishop.
Labor to Turnbull: Why do documents tabled in the Senate confirm that the minister for finance agreed to back pay rent on former Senator Day’s electorate office, effective from 1 July 2015,which was more than a year before rent was legally required under the lease?
Turnbull says the finance minister covered it in the senate statement.
3.22am GMT
03:22
Labor senators Katy Gallagher and Alex Gallacher have targeted finance minister, Mathias Cormann, over what he knew about the lease at the centre of Bob Day’s eligibility.
Gallagher asks about why the government didn’t know Day was linked to Fullarton Investments, that bought the property where he housed his electorate office off Day’s family trust, given an Asic search would have turned the link, and Bob Day was emailing from bobday@fullarton77.com.au.
Cormann explained that “not a single dollar of rent was paid” for the electorate office.
It wasn’t until after it emerged in August that Day had offered vendor financing, lending the money to Fullarton to pay for the property, that the government got advice about the alleged indirect pecuniary interest now to be considered by the high court.
Cormann denied the government was doing “everything it could to keep its most reliable crossbench senator happy”.
3.21am GMT
03:21
Bob Katter asks a question of Scott Morrison regarding the sale of S Kidman and Co. Why have you, minister, refused to give any guarantee that a majority shareholding in Kidman will not shift to foreign control over the sale to the Shanghai Cred?
Scott Morrison:
Any proposal that triggers the foreign investment threshold review, which a parcel of that size certainly would always have to come back and be considered by Firb [Foreign Investment Review Board] and by me as Treasurer, and I remind the member that on the two occasions that I was asked to consider the sale of the Kidman land, I rejected it. I note that the ShadowTreasurer indicated that he would have approved it of about the last election.
3.18am GMT
03:18
Mark Dreyfus to Malcolm Turnbull: This morning the member for Bennelong said that watering down section 18C of the Racial Discrimination Act was not a good use of the government’s time and is causing fear. Why is the PM opening the door to changes that even his own MPs think are a waste of time?
Turnbull:
The honourable member is obviously not paying any attention to what is now a very lively and active debate about the application of the provisions that he spoke about, the application of the provisions to some university students, to a cartoonist from the Australian. There is a lively debate about that, and as a barrister, he would well understand the importance of free speech.
The Labor party cannot escape the consequences of its failure, and what we have done, we have stopped the boats. We’ve stopped the drownings. We have ensured that children are not in detention, and we will continue to do that, and we won’t be lectured on human rights. We won’t be lectured on human rights by a party that was so neglectful, so careless of the human rights of those who lost their lives at sea.
Updated
at 3.26am GMT
3.15am GMT
03:15
Just back on Dutton. His postscript is that he will tell Labor the details of the travel lifetime ban shortly (presumably regarding third-country destinations). Just support the bill.
Trust me.
Updated
at 3.25am GMT
3.14am GMT
03:14
Government question number two on boats to immigration minister Peter Dutton.
Cory Bernardi, in his weekly Common Sense email, says we need to "drain the swamp" in Australia too pic.twitter.com/n7qWAymhCr
3.12am GMT
03:12
Shorten to Turnbull: On 17th October, the PM right here ruled out changes to section 18C of the Racial Discrimination Act. Less than a month later, the PM has opened the door to changes. PM, what change between then and now, what insults do you want people to be allowed to say?
Turnbull says to Shorten, let the committee do its work.
Talk about post-truth politics. The leader of the opposition has no regard for the record. No regard for consistency and his attempts to mischaracterise, to caricature anybody that stands in his way of inventing his Shortonian reality, which has no reality, no connection to the real world.
Updated
at 3.25am GMT
3.06am GMT
03:06
As flagged earlier, the first government question is on refugees.
Malcolm Turnbull tries to execute the political wedgie.
What Labor needs to recognise is that the complacency they are exhibiting today is exactly what led [Kevin] Rudd into his mistakes some years ago. Now, during the election, the leader of the opposition said he was on a unity ticket with us in terms of border protection policies.
Updated
at 3.08am GMT