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After more than 14 hours, dozens of votes and more than 30 bills passed, the Senate adjourns for the year.
“Let the Senate now adjourn.”
“Yes people have it. Merry Christmas and Hogmanay (Scottish word for New Year’s Eve).”
Labor is gaining support from all parliaments for what is known as a guillotine motion, allowing dozens of bills to pass with little to no debate.
“We passed 31 bills yesterday and 45 bills over the course of the week, which I don’t think is quite a record, but it’s certainly up there.”
Independent senator Jacqui Lambie tried to block the move, saying the government was rushing through important legislation.
“You know, it’s a problem when the guillotine is four pages long. And these are not small bills, these are not changes to legislation that we can call non-controversial. They are big and massive And they include bills that are so undercooked, and that, to put it politely, they are raw to the bone.
The Greens negotiated a deal with the government to help pass 27 bills.
A total of 32 bills were adopted on the last day of the parliamentary year.
The government agreed to increase the minimum lease term to five years under the Build to Rent program and exclude coal, gas and oil projects from funding thanks to small party support for the Future Made in program Australia of $22 billion.
Greens housing spokesperson Max Chandler-Mather said they had also secured $500 million from the federal government for essential improvements to social housing.
“That means insulation, air conditioning, shading, rooftop solar and batteries to save on bills for social housing tenants who are often forced to live through brutal summers and winters in homes in desperate need of repair.”
The Coalition voted with Labor to pass three controversial migration bills, giving the government the power to deport thousands of non-citizens to third countries, impose drastic travel bans, cancel conclusions on refugee protection and to ban telephones in detention centers.
Advocates have branded the package brutal, warning it could have far-reaching impacts across multicultural Australia.
The Prime Minister says he has not abandoned these communities.
“We support our multicultural communities every day. We are a government that wants an inclusive Australia that champions that, but we also understand that our migration system must be robust and must not be manipulated.”
But he could not detail how third-country deportation powers, which allow the government to pay undisclosed countries to deport people, would be used.
Journalist: “How soon do you plan to conclude a reception agreement with a third country? Which countries could we pay to welcome non-citizens of Australia? And will you guarantee that you will only enter into such agreements with signatories to the Refugee Convention?
PM: “We will implement our legislation. We will implement our legislation.”
Reporter: “Are there any guarantees or is all lost?”
The huge pile of laws passed included manufacturing and economic policies, cybersecurity bills, changes to the Reserve Bank, pensions, counter-terrorism funding, privacy and laws on mergers.
The only bill given additional debate time was the world’s first social media ban for teenagers, with social networks like TikTok, Snapchat and Instagram to ensure that those under 16 cannot access their sites during the year, under penalty of a fine of 50 million dollars.
Most, but not all, Coalition members also supported it.
Alex Antic and Matt Canavan vote against the bill.
“A whole generation of Australians watched this saga, this sordid saga, last week, unfold and be completely, completely disillusioned with their democratic process that they should be participating in, and in which we have completely denied them their voice. I mean, maybe we scheduled the debate at 10:30 p.m. on the last day of school, because we know everyone who will be affected by this group will be in bed They can’t even go to bed watch it. .”
The government has failed to pass changes to electoral reform rules, laws to create Australia’s first Environmental Protection Agency, and has still not introduced legislation to reduce or ban advertising on games of chance.
The Prime Minister assures that Parliament will return in February, although elections could be called at any time.
