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

I seek leave to move a motion relating to the recent military strikes on the Islamic Republic of Iran and the death of its brutal dictator, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, as circulated.

Leave not granted.

Pursuant to contingent notice of motion standing in my name, I move:

That so much of the standing orders be suspended as would prevent me moving a motion to provide for the consideration of a matter, namely a motion to give precedence to a motion relating to strikes on the Islamic Republic of Iran and the death of its brutal dictator, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

In moving the suspension of standing orders, events are currently unfolding, as we can all see on our television screens, in real time. The security situation is volatile. Australians, as we know, in the region are watching developments by the hour. There is a further possibility of an escalation by the IRGC. In moments like this, when history is literally being made before our eyes, the Senate cannot be a procedural spectator. This chamber must be able to respond immediately to put Australia's position clearly on the record, but, more than that, to send a clear signal to our allies and adversaries and give certainty to Australians both here at home, including, obviously, those who fled the Islamic regime, and abroad.

Standing orders, as we know, are here to keep the Senate orderly. They are not meant to stop the Senate speaking when the national interest—and this is about now, today—demands clarity and speed. In the first instance, we need to be able to acknowledge the moral clarity shown by the United States and the State of Israel in confronting the threat posed, not just in Iran but globally, by the Islamic Republic of Iran's nuclear ambitions. As we know, Iran's regime has divided the international community while advancing its nuclear and ballistic programs and while exporting violence through proxies. The United States and Israel have acted in the face of that reality.

The reason we must suspend standing orders is simple: this is urgent. As I have said, Australians and, in fact, the world, are watching these events, some of the most historic in our time, unfold in real time on our TVs. As we know, for decades, the Islamic Republic has pursued nuclear capability while expanding its ballistic missile program and entrenching a network of proxy militias in the region. That combination of nuclear ambition and ideological expansionism has long been recognised one of the gravest threats to international peace and security. A nuclear armed Iran would not simply alter the balance of power in the Middle East, as we know; it would shatter it. It matters to Australia, and that is why this suspension—and I would ask all senators to support the suspension. It's not often you actually watch such a significant event. Australia may not be taking part in it physically, but it actually matters not only to Australians here on the ground but also to Australians overseas and those who fled the regime and now call Australia home.

The motion, when you look at it, rightly condemns the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, the IRGC. They are the hardline security apparatus that have dominated Iran's political system and brutalised and slaughtered their own citizens for decades. The motion also, when you look at it, condemns them for what they have done to women—the violent repression of women demanding basic freedoms. As we also know, it is the IRGC that has been linked to extremist and antisemitic activity affecting Jewish Australians here on Australian soil. If we are not suspending standing orders at this point in time today for a matter this urgent so that the Australian Senate can clearly and articulately put its opinion on the record and send a clear signal, both here in Australia and more broadly, to those abroad and, in particular, to our allies who have shown the decisiveness and the moral clarity in relation to what has now occurred, I quite frankly do not know what urgency therefore is.

In moving the suspension of standing orders, this is not a debate that can just be parked until later in the program. As I have stated, this is precisely the kind of moment when standing orders should give way to what is clearly in the public interest. Australia's position should not be ambiguous. We need to be able to stand here today and reject, unequivocally, any future Iranian acquisition of nuclear weapons capability. We need to stand here today and condemn the IRGC's sponsorship of terrorism and destabilisation. We need to condemn their attacks on civilian infrastructure, and we need to ensure that our Jewish friends know we stand firmly against antisemitism and foreign interference on Australian soil. That is why I commend this suspension to the Senate.