Senate debates

Tuesday, 16 February 2021

  • Statement by the President (0 speeches)
    • Parliamentary Language (5 speeches)
      I committed to take from the chamber some objections to language in part of the chamber's procedures yesterday, with respect to the national apology. I have reviewed the language that was...
  • Bills (0 speeches)
  • Questions without Notice (0 speeches)
    • Workplace Relations (12 speeches)
      My question is to the Minister representing the Prime Minister, Senator Birmingham. Ann is an aged-care nurse who has been in her profession since 1978. She has said: The proposed legislation...
    • COVID-19: Aged Care, COVID-19: Vaccination (8 speeches)
      My question is to the Minister for Senior Australians and Aged Care services, Senator Colbeck. Can the minister inform the Senate of the government's plans to roll out the COVID-19 vaccine into...
    • Minister for Home Affairs (16 speeches)
      My question is to the minister representing the Minister for Home Affairs, Senator Reynolds. Yesterday the minister stated that the grant to the National Retail Association was made 'in response...
    • Members of Parliament: Staff (8 speeches)
      My question is to Senator Birmingham, the Minister representing the Prime Minister. I refer to Brittany Higgins's allegations of rape in this building almost two years ago. I asked you yesterday...
    • Consumer Safety (8 speeches)
      My question is to Senator Birmingham, as the minister representing the Treasurer. Last night the ABC's Australian Story ran a harrowing story about the dangers of button batteries. Last December,...
    • Members of Parliament: Staff (16 speeches)
      My question is to the Minister for Defence, Senator Reynolds. Reports indicate the alleged rapist's employment with the minister's office ended on Tuesday 26 March 2019. What was the reason for...
    • COVID-19: Construction Industry (8 speeches)
      My question is to the Minister for Employment, Skills, Small and Family Business, Senator Cash. Could the minister please update the Senate on how the Morrison government's support for the...
    • Senate Temporary Orders (8 speeches)
      My question is to the Leader of the Government in the Senate, Minister Birmingham. On 18 June 2020 the Liberal Party, the National Party and the Labor Party supported a temporary order...
    • Members of Parliament: Staff (16 speeches)
      My question is to the Minister for Defence, Senator Reynolds. On what date did the minister first become aware of the allegations of rape made by her former staff member? What action did the...
    • Kangaroo Product Exports (9 speeches)
      My question is to the minister representing the Minister for Agriculture, Drought and Emergency Management, Senator Ruston. Is the minister concerned at reports that legislation is being jointly...
    • Members of Parliament: Staff (8 speeches)
      My question is to the Minister representing the Prime Minister, Senator Birmingham. At the time Ms Higgins disclosed that an alleged rape had taken place in the minister's office on the evening...
    • Banking and Financial Services (9 speeches)
      My question is to the Minister for Superannuation, Financial Services and the Digital Economy, Senator Hume. The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the importance of accessible, quality and...
  • Answers to Questions on Notice (0 speeches)
  • Questions without Notice: Take Note of Answers (0 speeches)
    • Members of Parliament: Staff (2 speeches)
      I move: That the Senate take note of the answers given by the Minister for Finance (Senator Birmingham) and the Minister for Defence (Senator Reynolds) to questions without notice asked by...
    • Workplace Relations (5 speeches)
      I move: That the Senate take note of answers given by the Minister representing the Prime Minister (Senator Birmingham) to questions without notice asked by Senator Ciccone today relating to...
    • Members of Parliament: Staff (1 speech)
      I move: That the Senate take note of the answer given by the Minister for Finance (Senator Birmingham) to a question without notice asked by Senator Waters today relating to allegations...
  • Business (0 speeches)
    • Leave of Absence (1 speech)
      by leave—I move: That leave of absence be granted to Senator McMahon for today, for personal reasons. Question agreed to.
  • Motions (0 speeches)
  • Matters of Urgency (0 speeches)
    • Climate Change: Water (50 speeches)
      I inform the Senate that, at 8.30 am today, 27 proposals were received in accordance with standing order 75. The question of which proposal would be submitted to the Senate was determined by lot....
  • Documents (0 speeches)
  • Committees (0 speeches)
  • Notices (0 speeches)
    • Postponement (1 speech)
      I seek leave to postpone business of the Senate No.2 for another date. Leave is granted. I postpone business of the Senate No. 2 listed for today under my name—disallowance of the Federal...
  • Motions (0 speeches)
  • Adjournment (0 speeches)
    • Paradise Dam (1 speech)
      Look at all the Labor Party senators running out of the chamber because they know I'm going to be talking about Paradise Dam, which is the greatest infrastructure failure in the history of...
    • Workplace Relations (1 speech)
      This week in the parliament the Morrison government are returning to their happy place: cutting workers' wages. In the Liberals' happy place it is always time to cut workers' wages: economy going...
    • Mental Health (3 speeches)
      I rise tonight to speak on the outcomes in the form of a declaration of the Mental Health Services Learning Network, or TheMHS, pre-conference consumer forum, 'Share our Power', this year hosted...
    • Women in Sport (1 speech)
      Last year at Senate estimates I asked Sport Australia, the nation's peak sporting body, if strength, stamina and physique are relevant attributes in rugby union, Australian Rules football,...
    • Members of Parliament: Staff (1 speech)
      I've spoken in this place previously about sexual harassment in the workplace, and it grieves me that I need to speak about it again. It's got to stop; it's got to be stopped. This abject failure...
    • Iraq War, Assange, Mr Julian (1 speech)
      Today, 16 February, is known as the day the world said no to war—to the Iraq War. It is still considered the largest protest action in history. Over 10 million people in 600 cities across...
    • Conservatism (1 speech)
      I rise tonight to speak in relation to the worrying trend of incursions into common sense, values and decency at state level across our nation. On occasion I'm asked what drew me into public...
    • Paper Manufacturing, Recreational Hunting (1 speech)
      When I first came into this place, in my first speech I spoke about the values that my parents instilled in me and how they would be my touchstone through my time representing the people of...
    • Workplace Relations (1 speech)
      The Morrison government's industrial relations omnibus bill will make job security worse. That's not all the government are going after. They are using the pandemic as a disguise to launch a...
    • Indigenous Youth Justice (1 speech)
      I rise to contribute to this adjournment debate. In August, the Premier of Queensland, Annastacia Palaszczuk, said that the government that she leads is committed to developing a treaty with our...
    • Scarr, Senator Paul (1 speech)
      I rise tonight to reject a statement made recently in this place by Queensland Senator Scarr, who cynically used the protection of parliament to impugn the integrity of a former parliamentarian,...
    • Tzu Chi Foundation (1 speech)
      I bring to the attention of the Senate the incredibly valuable work of the Taiwanese Buddhist international humanitarian organisation Tzu Chi and its founder and spiritual leader, Dharma Master...
    • Pell, Cardinal George, AC (1 speech)
      There are various reasons to remember 7 April 2020—the drama of the High Court acquittal and later the dramatic film taken by helicopter of Pell's release from 12 months of solitary...
    • Myanmar: Human Rights (1 speech)
      As the Australian Greens spokesperson on foreign affairs, I rise to speak out about human rights violations wherever they occur, because we believe that universal human rights are fundamental and...