Ian Macdonald (Queensland, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Northern Australia) Share this | Hansard source

by leave—There is absolutely no legal reason why the government cannot proclaim that particular section of the act without proclaiming the other parts of the act that Senator Ludwig referred to. It was the intention of the Senate, when the motion was originally passed, that those spent conviction provisions take effect immediately. By a curiosity in the act, what Senator Ludwig says is correct, but it does not in any way stop the government from today proclaiming that particular provision and so bringing into effect the will of the Senate and the interests of those who have been wronged by this particular provision. I am not here to debate this, of course, and I cannot urge people to vote for the motion, but I simply say that the government’s reason for opposing the motion is not precise.