Michaelia Cash (WA, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Foreign Affairs) Share this | Hansard source

I think it's actually really disappointing because every person who comes into this chamber is able to express an opinion in relation to the question before the chair. As you said, President, Senator Shoebridge was heard in silence when he spoke of why there should be a suspension of standing orders. Unfortunately what the Australian people are now witnessing is the Australian Greens saying, 'It's my way or the highway.' Well, the bad news is that, in this case, we are not going to support the suspension. The fact that they're talking now shows that the Greens want to silence anybody who does not agree with them. Quite frankly, that is one of the reasons that this suspension motion should not go ahead. There are proper avenues for debate. There are proper ways to put views on the record. There are proper mechanisms for scrutiny and accountability. The way the Greens are behaving now is not one of them.