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Furious Scott Morrison vows to 'fight' Nauru bill as pressure builds on government – politics live
Furious Scott Morrison vows to ‘fight’ Nauru bill as pressure builds on government – politics live
(35 minutes later)
Things are going GREAT
Chamber chat. @cpyne comes in to talk to Andrew Wilkie and Adam Bandt pic.twitter.com/yfpgVNjfO1
An animated chat across the table between @Tony_Burke, @cporterwa and @cpyne a little earlier pic.twitter.com/okul6hhgID
Thank you for all the messages you have sent through about your standouts from the 2018 Australian political year – and thank you for your well-wishes. I’m not repeating them here, because it’s a bit like retweeting a compliment, but we do appreciate them.
Allan: What stood out for me in 2018: In the positive: Gay marriage finally getting through with such a majority from the plebiscite. So despite the best attempts by the RWNJ’s to railroad it the people saw through the smoke and mirrors and voted for it.
In the negative: There is so much that could be listed, but it would fill more than a page. Really it can best be summed up with my amazement that despite everything that this government does and stands for that something like 46% of my fellow citizens still want to vote for this mob. I genuinely stand in despair that this could be so.
Christa and John: 2018 will be remembered as the year when the country narrowly avoided being taken over in an authoritarian nationalist coup led by Peter Dutton and Tony Abbott, which was made a possibility by the ravages visited on society by decline and death of neoliberalism – and the naked self-interest it conditions in politicos.
And hopefully the year will be remembered as the year when finally the country reversed course and started to recover its soul which had been sacrificed to regressive economic policy that increased inequality, to the persecution of refugees for political gain, and to the far-right ideological fixation that destroyed the possibility of effective climate change and energy policy.
Rohan: Two moments struck me this year are the following: ONE: Malcolm Turnbull appearing on Q&A after his ejection from the leadership of the Liberal party. He claimed that his government was responsible for the marriage equality vote, eliciting a mixture of scoffs and applause from the audience. His rewriting of history was brazenly false – he and his party found every possible excuse to kick the can of marriage equality down the road – but it also completely minimised the work by marriage equality advocates such as Dr Kerryn Phelps, Magda Szubanski, the ALP, Greens and many others. I nearly spat out my dinner! As Catherine Tate’s Nan would say ... “What a load of old shit!” TWO: Prime Muppet Scott Morrison (I refuse to call him Scomo – a term of endearment perhaps for someone who is playing on your team, and thus, has a shared goal) claiming that he would remove the ability for schools to use religious discrimination of LGBT students within two weeks. A few months later, and the LNP are kicking the can down the road again … but not before taking time our to shore up their own safety with anti-copy party motions to prevent Morrison being ejected by his party members.
David: Peter Dutton putting in a huge effort and thinking his numbers men could count, ordering a new chair for the PMs office, booking his whole family to fly first class to Canberra for his ascension, only to discover that Turnbull had developed a cunning plan and Scott Morrison was now PM. Only comparable event I can think of is Malcolm Fraser calling an election to thrash Bill Hayden only to get back from Government House to discover Bob Hawke was now opposition leader.
While we are in the land of state politics, Jay Weatherill is announcing his retirement in the South Australian parliament.
Meanwhile, for a bit of levity, Bernie Finn from the Victorian Liberals has quite the unique take on why there aren’t more women in the Liberal party – it’s Labor (and the Greens’) fault.
Liberal MP Bernie Finn on the Liberals' dearth of women MPs: "If the Labor party and the Greens want to have more women in the party, what they should have done was not defeated them." @theage
I mean, a counter-argument to that would be preselecting women in safer seats, but that would be CRAZY.
And because I have been asked, His Excellence Paul de Jersey is currently the acting governor general, as Peter Cosgrove is overseas, representing Australia for the funeral of George HW Bush.
De Jersey is the Queensland governor.
The more you know.
For those asking when the parliament could be shut down, really, it can be at any time.
But it would most likely be after question time.
David Coleman just about confirmed that as a live option while talking to the ABC just seconds ago:
David Coleman just about confirmed that as a live option while talking to the ABC just seconds ago:
The prime minister has made a clear statement about that. We’re very determined not to allow these changes to be passed through the parliament. They would massively weaken Australia’s border security, they would lead to the starting of boats again, and they would lead to the end of offshore processing and resettlement, which is one of the key tenets that has kept Australia’s borders secure for all these years under this government. And we’ll not be agreeing to those changes and as the PM said, we’ll be using all measures to seek to stop them.”
The prime minister has made a clear statement about that. We’re very determined not to allow these changes to be passed through the parliament. They would massively weaken Australia’s border security, they would lead to the starting of boats again, and they would lead to the end of offshore processing and resettlement, which is one of the key tenets that has kept Australia’s borders secure for all these years under this government. And we’ll not be agreeing to those changes and as the PM said, we’ll be using all measures to seek to stop them.”
In terms of the tactics that Scott Morrison was talking about, one of them is suspending parliament and going home early.
In terms of the tactics that Scott Morrison was talking about, one of them is suspending parliament and going home early.
I am not joking. The government would rather see the parliament shut down at this stage, then have this reach the floor.
I am not joking. The government would rather see the parliament shut down at this stage, then have this reach the floor.
The lines have been drawn in very black marker by Scott Morrison.
The lines have been drawn in very black marker by Scott Morrison.
I mean, seriously guys, let the scale fall from your eyes. This is not about politics.This is about Australia’s national security. That’s why I’m standing here. This is about Australia’s national security. It’s not about what happens on the floor of the house or the floor of the Senate. You got to look past Canberra. This is about Australia’s safety. And Bill Shorten is a clear and present threat to Australia’s safety. Because he is so obsessed with politics, that he cannot see the national interest.
I mean, seriously guys, let the scale fall from your eyes. This is not about politics.This is about Australia’s national security. That’s why I’m standing here. This is about Australia’s national security. It’s not about what happens on the floor of the house or the floor of the Senate. You got to look past Canberra. This is about Australia’s safety. And Bill Shorten is a clear and present threat to Australia’s safety. Because he is so obsessed with politics, that he cannot see the national interest.
That press conference, as seen by Mike Bowers:
That press conference, as seen by Mike Bowers:
The Intelligence and Security Committee has commenced a review of the Australian Citizenship Amendment (Strengthening the Citizenship Loss Provisions) Bill 2018. Submissions are open until 11 January 2019. More info at https://t.co/zmZ7qYrh1e pic.twitter.com/GDiP32VN0P
The Intelligence and Security Committee has commenced a review of the Australian Citizenship Amendment (Strengthening the Citizenship Loss Provisions) Bill 2018. Submissions are open until 11 January 2019. More info at https://t.co/zmZ7qYrh1e pic.twitter.com/GDiP32VN0P
What do we make of that press conference? Well, the short version is Scott Morrison is under excruciating pressure. He’s a prime minister in a corner.
The purpose of the press conference was to telegraph to all and sundry around the building that he intended to fight his way out of the corner by whatever means necessary.
Politics was not a reality television show, Morrison told reporters, of course knowing full well that it is, and people are watching, and if his prime ministerial authority takes a hammer blow later today, people will not miss it. It’s a judgment he will be unable to escape.
If Morrison loses this vote, it will be a de facto motion of no-confidence, so it’s unsurprising that the prime minister is coming out swinging. Fine if it works, but it’s highly problematic if it doesn’t.
Morrison has spent the morning telling anyone who will listen that if the government loses this vote, it has lost the ability to control one of its key policies, the protection of the borders, and all hell will break lose. (Never mind the minor inconvenience that the government is, itself, getting kids off Nauru, and all hell has not broken lose. Demonstrably).
Back to the Morrison thunderousness. The threats are designed to turn the political screws on his opponents, to try and break the resolve of the non-government parties to follow through with the current threat.
But that judgment that Morrison has willingly offered up – if this comes to pass, policy-making is now outside my control – really is the working definition of a government that has lost command of the play.
Morrison, in a feverish effort to save himself, and counter the threat that has loomed on the final sitting day of a torrid political year, is helping to make a public case for an expression of no-confidence in the government
This year is not over yet, but here is a bit more from how you saw it:
Scott: Far and away the biggest event for 2018 was that climate change is back on the agenda in a very powerful way. Solar is going crazy which means governments will just have to deal with renewables into the electricity grid.
Obviously the middle- to upper-middle classes in Victoria are convinced of the pressing need for climate action AND so are school kids, this is very powerful.
ALSO the public is finally waking up to just how bad natural disasters will get, see California and now Queensland fires. Sadly as the disasters keep coming the public will realise just how duped they have been and they will get very angry.
Wendy: As an historian the five most memorable images of this parliament are:
(1) Julie Bishop’s elegant legs in her red shoes at her presser after losing the ballot
(2) Liberal party women adorning themselves in Handmaids Tale red in the chamber
(3) The new PM walking out of the chamber as the member for Wentworth rose to make her maiden speech
(4) Liberal party men vacating the chamber as Julia Banks announced her resignation from the party
(5) Greens senator Mehreen Faruqi, first Muslim woman Senator, standing resplendent delivering her articulate maiden speech one week after Fraser Anning’s disgraceful diatribe.
Stephen: As to this year to be brutally honest I am just glad I have made it through the last 12 or so months, the last year has been particularly brutal for me. I am 49, a survivor of “conversion therapy” and a mother’s abuse as a child. I spent 10 years living on the streets of Sydney after running away from home. I am also “Public Enemy Number One” right now due to being trans. The last 12 months alone I have attended 12 funerals for people now out of this mess. So my feelings are personal and also hurt and angry because people need to learn to be more aware of what they say, because the real-world consequences for their stupid hurtful actions or “jokes” are having real-life reactions out here in the world.
And it is also worth mentioning that the government has fought the advice of medical professionals to have asylum seekers and refugee brought to Australia for medical treatment they were not receiving in Nauru or Manus Island, meaning the federal court has been asked to intervene.
Then the government brought a case that questioned the federal court’s authority in these matters.
This bill leaves the responsibility with the minister. It provides for border protection and national security protections. It installs an independent health authority. It only allows for temporary transfers.
Just a reminder that it was doctors who really started turning the tide on the offshore detention centre medical transfers, because they (through their professional bodies) said they could no longer stand by and watch it happen.
There is no doctor anywhere in the world, @ScottMorrisonMP, who will suggest that incarcerating and denying medical care to children is a way of preventing drowning. Just support this bill so you don't lose. Stop your political games.
Scott Morrison talks about the encryption laws cluster here:
.@David_Speers: Isn't it also politics to change how we're dealing with these encryption amendments to buy enough time to see off the migration bill?@ScottMorrisonMP: They can give us leave and we can pass the amendments straightaway.MORE: https://t.co/zcW6Tg22SO #SkyLiveNow pic.twitter.com/0npBz6KQwr
And here he is talking about using “every tool” to stop the medical transfers bill:
.@ScottMorrisonMP: I will do everything in my power to ensure that these suggested changes that would undermine our border protection laws never see the light of dayI will fight them using whatever tool or tactic I have available to meMORE: https://t.co/zcW6Tg22SO #SkyLiveNow pic.twitter.com/kZr8HVCtBP
For what it is worth, Labor sources are infuriated with Scott Morrison’s take on the encryption bill snafu and want it called out as a lie.
They say that Morrison wanted the committee report into encryption tabled by 5.30pm yesterday, but the committee was not even meant to meet until 4.45pm to finalise the report.
Then there were the nine divisions in under an hour over the energy big stick bill.
The committee then met, and finalised the report in 15 minutes, where it was sent to the House. Labor worked with Christopher Pyne to delay the adjournment debate to ensure the report could be tabled last night.
And we know that all happened, because Mike Bowers caught photos of the discussions the committee was having in the House and we were told what the argument was about, before this all blew up today.
From Paul Karp’s story:
In a huddle on the sidelines of parliamentary speeches about the Coalition’s energy legislation, members of the joint committee on intelligence and security handling the bill engaged in open debate about details of the deal.
Racing to beat the adjournment debate so a full report could be tabled, the deputy chair, Anthony Byrne, was seen having words with the chair, Andrew Hastie, and the attorney general, Christian Porter, alongside fellow committee members Mike Kelly and Julian Leeser.
Guardian Australia understands Labor objected to the timeframe set by Hastie to agree on outstanding issues.
After the group broke, Byrne proceeded to sprint in and out of the chamber with drafts of proposed recommendations.
As the 7.30pm deadline approached, Porter strolled back in and shook hands triumphantly first with Byrne then Kelly.
The government leader in the House, Christopher Pyne, asked Hastie if he was still waiting for the report, then delayed the adjournment, allowing the report to be tabled at 7.50pm.
In an improvised speech likely indicating the member for Canning had been more focused on the report itself, Hastie praised government concessions to enhance oversight, define the term “systemic weakness” and narrow the range of offences to which new encryption cracking powers will apply.
Hastie commended Byrne and Kelly for bipartisan support for the bill and the secretariat for the haste in putting the report together.
The outbreak of bonhomie crossed the aisle, and Byrne in turn praised Hastie’s “steadfast commitment to bipartisanship essential to keeping this committee working and this parliament working”.
For anyone wondering, these photos were taken just after 4pm.
While Scott Morrison had his press conference of power in the House, Tony Burke and Adam Bandt have just walked in to a room together to have a chat. Christopher Pyne is talking with his staff.
Tony Abbott is in the chamber tapping away with two fingers on his laptop. That is how he types.
Burke is back and is talking to Pyne behind the Speaker’s chair.
Scott Morrison walks out of the press conference as more questions are yelled at him.
Last question was called and it was on how is it a threat to national security to allow the minister in charge (right now that is David Coleman) to make the decision:
Morrison says he dreads the day a “Labor minister is in charge” of those decisions:
You know what – I’m not going to see an arrangement put in place that could ever see potentially, and I hope a long way down the track, a Labor minister being responsible for a decision like that. We’ve got a clear policy – it’s working. It is worked for five years. It has kept Australians safe. Anyone who wants to have a debate with me about that, happy to line up, any day of the week.
Why would you change something that has ... worked so successfully, so hard won, and at great cost. Why on Earth would Bill Shorten sell all of that out for a cheap day in politics?
Siri, show me a politician under pressure:
Scott Morrison:
Stopping terrorists is more important than getting a cheap win for the nightly news out of Canberra. Their support for amendments in the Senate to abolish offshore processing as we know it, the cheap win in the House of Representatives, don’t do it, Bill.
The cheap win on the House of Representatives floor is not worth it. You know what you’ll be telling every Australian? Every single Australian, if you support those amendment, Bill, you’ll be telling them what they really already know, when it comes to border protection, your heart isn’t in it, and you and your party cannot be trusted that you have learnt nothing from the horror show you inflicted on them when you were last in government.
So I think you know where I stand on this issue. I have always stood on the same place in this issue, I will never move from where I stand on this issue. We’ll continue to ensure a strong border protection framework for Australia that’s been successful, and we will continue to deliver the leadership on national security, we’re no longer joined at the hip when it comes to the Labor Party, I doubt we really ever were.
Every single time, they have to be dragged along, dragged along, we’re the party of national security and we can keep Australians safe. Bill Shorten hasn’t got the mettle for it.
The games being played over the encryption bill are basically boiling down to this: the government wants to change the timetable in the House to stop the Nauru bill.
The amendments to the encryption bill were going to be made in the Senate. Now the government is saying the amendments have to be dealt with in the House.
Here’s the letter Christian Porter has sent to the opposition pic.twitter.com/WPbtEy8Iql
