Stephen Conroy (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Leader of the Opposition in the Senate) Share this | Hansard source

Since 1961, the parliament has only been prorogued four times, under extraordinary circumstances, and never to set the scene for an election and never to have a manipulation of politics in this way. Never in modern history has a government prorogued the parliament to obtain a political advantage. That is what this government has done. They have prorogued the parliament to obtain a political advantage. In fact, the government have boasted about how they have used the proroguing of parliament to give themselves a political advantage. Even the newspapers are full of it. You cannot have missed those; I am sure that you have not. They have boasted about their clever political manipulation of the parliament by proroguing it. That is without question. If they are called out on it, Mr President, it is fair debate. I accept all of what you have said so far, Mr President, and I appreciate what you have said.