Extract from The Guardian
The Turnbull government is likely to call a double-dissolution
election for 2 July after the Senate defied it and defeated legislation
establishing a construction industry watchdog, the Australian Building
and Construction Commission (ABCC).
However, the Senate backed a seperate bill to abolish the tribunal which set minimum pay rates for truck owner-drivers, which the government had been strongly backing over the last week.
The defeat of the ABCC legislation marks the start of a unofficial election campaign and comes as Malcolm Turnbull’s own approval rating is sliding.
The government’s lead has evaporated in the major opinion polls, with Newspoll putting Labor ahead in two-party preferred terms (49% to 51%) and Ipsos putting each of the major parties at 50%.
The government had refused to countenance any of the substantive changes proposed by the Senate crossbench to its bill to re-establish the ABCC and Turnbull had prorogued parliament on the basis that if did not pass the industrial bills he would call an election for the House of Representatives and the full Senate after the 3 May budget, to be held on 2 July.
The bill to abolish the Road Safety Remuneration Tribunal passed the Senate 36 votes to 32 with the support of seven of eight crossbench senators.
The government had claimed independent contractors would lose jobs, and their businesses would collapse, due to the requirement of higher minimum rates.
Only Motoring Enthusiast senator Ricky Muir opposed the abolition of minimum pay rates intended to reduce road deaths by removing financial incentives to skip breaks or speed.
The vote came on the first day of the proposed three weeks of special sittings the government had allowed for its consideration and after a rancorous day in parliament.
Labor moved to set up a snap Senate inquiry into federal Liberal fundraising foundations and to force Turnbull’s cabinet secretary, Arthur Sinodinos, to give evidence, and the Labor leader, Bill Shorten, was forced to rebuke his deputy Senate leader, Stephen Conroy, over an attack he had made earlier in the day against the governor general, Sir Peter Cosgrove.
The Turnbull government also accused Labor of “reckless, crass populism” because of its pledge to hold a banking royal commission, while considering its own response to the string of banking scandals to counter the Labor policy, a response which is likely to be announced on Tuesday.
The ABCC bill was defeated 34 votes to 36, with four crossbenchers – senators Bob Day, Nick Xenophon, Dio Wang and David Leyonhjelm – voting with the government at the second reading stage and four against, after the workplace relations minister, Michaelia Cash, challenged the parliament to “choose if it stands for thuggery or fairness”. With Labor and the Greens opposed, the government needed six of the eight crossbench votes.
The Construction Forestry Mining Energy Union (CFMEU) welcomed the defeat of the ABCC bill, saying it was “a win for workers’ and basic human rights and freedoms”.
“We congratulate those crossbench senators who have taken a principled stance in rejecting this bill, which discriminates against 1 million Australians whose sweat and skill built this nation”, the CFMEU national construction secretary, Dave Noonan, said.
Labor’s employment spokesman, Brendan O’Connor, said the defeat of the ABCC bill showed “the prime minister and his Liberal team thought they could bluff and bully the parliament into passing the bill, [but] they were wrong”.
The Australian Industry Group’s head of workplace relations policy, Stephen Smith, told Guardian Australia “we’re very disappointed that that legislation has not been passed”.
“The government has said it intends to proceed with a double dissolution in those circumstances. If the government is re-elected we hope that the bill can be passed at the earliest possible time.”
The Senate is yet to consider another industrial relations bill that could form a double-dissolution trigger, as well as the abolition of a trucking remuneration tribunal, which the government also forced through the lower house on Monday night. Even after they are passed, the government will bring down its budget on 3 May, pass the supply bills and allow Shorten to make his budget speech in reply before starting the formal election campaign.
Labor and some of the crossbench are also seeking to use the final sittings before the budget and the election to make political points and embarrass the government.
Labor is likely to win the backing of the Greens to set up an inquiry into the powers of the Australian Electoral Commission to oversee so-called “associated entities” used for fundraising purposes.
In the Senate, Labor asked Sinodinos about his role as NSW finance director during the time that the NSW party is accused by the NSW Electoral Commission of “washing” property industry donations – prohibited at state level – through the federal “associated entity, the Free Enterprise Foundation”.
In evidence before the Icac, and in public statements, Sinodinos has said he did not know about the banned donations.
In the House of Representatives, Labor asked the treasurer, Scott Morrison, about donations possibly made to another fundraising body, the Millennium Forum, during his time as NSW Liberal party director.
Morrison responded furiously, saying there wasn’t “a hole dark enough that the NSW Labor party hasn’t been in it”.
“This is a party in New South Wales that wrote the book on corruption in New South Wales under Labor ... They have the gall to come into this place and throw this sort of muck around,” he said.
Labor has moved a notice of motion in the Senate to set up an inquiry by the Senate finance and public administration references committee to report by 4 May – the day after the federal budget – about “commonwealth legislative provisions relating to oversight of associated entities of political parties, with particular reference to the adequacy of the funding and disclosure regime relating to annual returns; the powers of the Australian Electoral Commission with respect to supervision of the conduct of and reporting by associated entities of political parties; and … (that) Senator Sinodinos appear before the committee to answer questions”.
The NSW Electoral Commission insists the Liberal party is obliged to declare the donations it directed through the federal party at a state level also and it is withholding $4.38m from the NSW Liberal party – money the party needs to fight the imminent federal election – to focus the party’s mind on that question. And it is standing its ground regarding criticisms against the party and former party office holders, including Sinodinos, who has had his lawyers draft an angry letter to the commission.
With all major published opinion polls showing the main parties neck and neck, or the Labor party slightly ahead of the government, the final weeks of parliament are descending into bitter debate about the ABCC, the banking industry and the claims regarding electoral funding.
The parliamentary session began with acrimony on Monday when Conroy attacked Sir Peter Cosgrove for acceding to the prime minister’s request to prorogue parliament.
“What we saw is a blight on our democracy today,” he said. “We’ve seen a democratically elected decision overturned by the Queen’s representative ... We’ve seen today a governor general overturn the will of this chamber, a democratically elected chamber. That’s what we have seen, a tawdry political stunt and the governor general has demeaned his office. Never has the need for a republic been more evident than today.”
Turnbull said Conroy had disgraced himself.
“Well, not for the first time, Senator Conroy has disgraced himself and I look forward to the leader of the opposition publicly disassociating himself from those appalling remarks reflecting, as Senator Conroy did, on the integrity and the office of the governor general,” he told reporters on Monday.
Shorten later rebuked Conroy, saying in a written statement: “The governor general has one of the most important roles in our democracy and that should be respected by everyone. Senator Conroy should confine his remarks to the government.”
However, the Senate backed a seperate bill to abolish the tribunal which set minimum pay rates for truck owner-drivers, which the government had been strongly backing over the last week.
The defeat of the ABCC legislation marks the start of a unofficial election campaign and comes as Malcolm Turnbull’s own approval rating is sliding.
The government’s lead has evaporated in the major opinion polls, with Newspoll putting Labor ahead in two-party preferred terms (49% to 51%) and Ipsos putting each of the major parties at 50%.
The government had refused to countenance any of the substantive changes proposed by the Senate crossbench to its bill to re-establish the ABCC and Turnbull had prorogued parliament on the basis that if did not pass the industrial bills he would call an election for the House of Representatives and the full Senate after the 3 May budget, to be held on 2 July.
The bill to abolish the Road Safety Remuneration Tribunal passed the Senate 36 votes to 32 with the support of seven of eight crossbench senators.
The government had claimed independent contractors would lose jobs, and their businesses would collapse, due to the requirement of higher minimum rates.
Only Motoring Enthusiast senator Ricky Muir opposed the abolition of minimum pay rates intended to reduce road deaths by removing financial incentives to skip breaks or speed.
The vote came on the first day of the proposed three weeks of special sittings the government had allowed for its consideration and after a rancorous day in parliament.
Labor moved to set up a snap Senate inquiry into federal Liberal fundraising foundations and to force Turnbull’s cabinet secretary, Arthur Sinodinos, to give evidence, and the Labor leader, Bill Shorten, was forced to rebuke his deputy Senate leader, Stephen Conroy, over an attack he had made earlier in the day against the governor general, Sir Peter Cosgrove.
The Turnbull government also accused Labor of “reckless, crass populism” because of its pledge to hold a banking royal commission, while considering its own response to the string of banking scandals to counter the Labor policy, a response which is likely to be announced on Tuesday.
The ABCC bill was defeated 34 votes to 36, with four crossbenchers – senators Bob Day, Nick Xenophon, Dio Wang and David Leyonhjelm – voting with the government at the second reading stage and four against, after the workplace relations minister, Michaelia Cash, challenged the parliament to “choose if it stands for thuggery or fairness”. With Labor and the Greens opposed, the government needed six of the eight crossbench votes.
The Construction Forestry Mining Energy Union (CFMEU) welcomed the defeat of the ABCC bill, saying it was “a win for workers’ and basic human rights and freedoms”.
“We congratulate those crossbench senators who have taken a principled stance in rejecting this bill, which discriminates against 1 million Australians whose sweat and skill built this nation”, the CFMEU national construction secretary, Dave Noonan, said.
Labor’s employment spokesman, Brendan O’Connor, said the defeat of the ABCC bill showed “the prime minister and his Liberal team thought they could bluff and bully the parliament into passing the bill, [but] they were wrong”.
The Australian Industry Group’s head of workplace relations policy, Stephen Smith, told Guardian Australia “we’re very disappointed that that legislation has not been passed”.
“The government has said it intends to proceed with a double dissolution in those circumstances. If the government is re-elected we hope that the bill can be passed at the earliest possible time.”
The Senate is yet to consider another industrial relations bill that could form a double-dissolution trigger, as well as the abolition of a trucking remuneration tribunal, which the government also forced through the lower house on Monday night. Even after they are passed, the government will bring down its budget on 3 May, pass the supply bills and allow Shorten to make his budget speech in reply before starting the formal election campaign.
Labor and some of the crossbench are also seeking to use the final sittings before the budget and the election to make political points and embarrass the government.
Labor is likely to win the backing of the Greens to set up an inquiry into the powers of the Australian Electoral Commission to oversee so-called “associated entities” used for fundraising purposes.
In the Senate, Labor asked Sinodinos about his role as NSW finance director during the time that the NSW party is accused by the NSW Electoral Commission of “washing” property industry donations – prohibited at state level – through the federal “associated entity, the Free Enterprise Foundation”.
In evidence before the Icac, and in public statements, Sinodinos has said he did not know about the banned donations.
In the House of Representatives, Labor asked the treasurer, Scott Morrison, about donations possibly made to another fundraising body, the Millennium Forum, during his time as NSW Liberal party director.
Morrison responded furiously, saying there wasn’t “a hole dark enough that the NSW Labor party hasn’t been in it”.
“This is a party in New South Wales that wrote the book on corruption in New South Wales under Labor ... They have the gall to come into this place and throw this sort of muck around,” he said.
Labor has moved a notice of motion in the Senate to set up an inquiry by the Senate finance and public administration references committee to report by 4 May – the day after the federal budget – about “commonwealth legislative provisions relating to oversight of associated entities of political parties, with particular reference to the adequacy of the funding and disclosure regime relating to annual returns; the powers of the Australian Electoral Commission with respect to supervision of the conduct of and reporting by associated entities of political parties; and … (that) Senator Sinodinos appear before the committee to answer questions”.
The NSW Electoral Commission insists the Liberal party is obliged to declare the donations it directed through the federal party at a state level also and it is withholding $4.38m from the NSW Liberal party – money the party needs to fight the imminent federal election – to focus the party’s mind on that question. And it is standing its ground regarding criticisms against the party and former party office holders, including Sinodinos, who has had his lawyers draft an angry letter to the commission.
With all major published opinion polls showing the main parties neck and neck, or the Labor party slightly ahead of the government, the final weeks of parliament are descending into bitter debate about the ABCC, the banking industry and the claims regarding electoral funding.
The parliamentary session began with acrimony on Monday when Conroy attacked Sir Peter Cosgrove for acceding to the prime minister’s request to prorogue parliament.
“What we saw is a blight on our democracy today,” he said. “We’ve seen a democratically elected decision overturned by the Queen’s representative ... We’ve seen today a governor general overturn the will of this chamber, a democratically elected chamber. That’s what we have seen, a tawdry political stunt and the governor general has demeaned his office. Never has the need for a republic been more evident than today.”
Turnbull said Conroy had disgraced himself.
“Well, not for the first time, Senator Conroy has disgraced himself and I look forward to the leader of the opposition publicly disassociating himself from those appalling remarks reflecting, as Senator Conroy did, on the integrity and the office of the governor general,” he told reporters on Monday.
Shorten later rebuked Conroy, saying in a written statement: “The governor general has one of the most important roles in our democracy and that should be respected by everyone. Senator Conroy should confine his remarks to the government.”
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