Jacqui Lambie (Tasmania, Jacqui Lambie Network) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Today Senator Pocock and I succeeded in splitting out four parts of the government's closing the loopholes bill. The crossbench got this bill on the day it was tabled in the lower house. This is a massive bill, and it's a wonder they managed to get it to us without the use of a forklift. When a bill this big comes to the Senate, it's always going to take time to go through it and to put it under the microscope, and you can usually find unintended consequences. Rushing through laws that will impact the whole country—especially when our economy is tanking—is not just irresponsible; it is plain dangerous.

Working closely with Senator Pocock's office, we sat down and worked through it. I thank Senator Pocock, his team and my team for the work they have put into it. It became quite clear to us that there were four elements of this bill that weren't controversial, that would have broad support and, most importantly, that would help some of the most vulnerable Australians. Who could argue with not making federal first responders prove they had PTSD, with protecting victims of domestic violence from discrimination, with making sure workers get their redundancy payments and with bringing silica into line with asbestos in relation to worker safety? These four measures are no-brainers. But if we hadn't managed to split the bill, Australians affected by these issues wouldn't see the protections pass until July 2024, because apparently it's so important to get the bill through.

The government has suggested today that the senators who voted to split the bill don't care about wage theft or people being paid properly for the job that they do or people being killed at work. That's rubbish, and I find it offensive, and I know that most people would know that. Of course we care about these issues, but rushing through a bill this size without careful consideration of the negative impacts it may have is not smart. That is why we will take the time needed to get the job done.