Nick Xenophon (SA, Independent) Share this | Hansard source

Well, 'shame,' says Senator Dastyari, but I think it is important that we talk about the Commonwealth Electoral Amendment Bill 2016 and about the importance that it has to our democratic system. When all is said and done, at the very core of this bill for Senate voting reform is a principle of democratic will, of equity and of genuinely giving the power back to the people as to how senators are elected, because the current Senate voting system is broken and it needs to be repaired. It needs to be repaired in a way that encourages choice other than for the major parties or, for that matter, significant minor parties. It needs to be repaired so that voters are encouraged to consider alternatives in microparties and Independents, and I believe this bill will do that. Above all, it needs to be repaired to rid Australian democracy of the preference whispering, the backroom deals amongst the party apparatchiks of the major, minor and microparties alike, deals that lead to outcomes where many voters feel particularly cheated that their choice and their will has been subverted. For instance, how many Australian Labor Party voters in the 2013 federal election in South Australia, voting for the ALP Senate team, realised that their vote would end up electing Senator Bob Day from Family First?