Politics live updates: Jacqui Lambie blasts Labor for ‘mother of all guillotines’, shutting down debate

Crossbench MP Rebekha Sharkie is seeking to force the Government to put legislation to ban gambling ads to Parliament or allow debate on the various other bills for the same thing.

She is being backed in by the Coalition.

The Government confirmed last weekend it had jettisoned plans to bring a ban on gambling ads to Parliament this week despite promising action for more than a year.

It’s a sensitive point for many in the Government; a committee that recommended a ban on ads among other measures to reduce harm from problem gambling was led by the widely loved Labor MP Peta Murphy, who died shortly after tabling the report.

The Teal independents have lodged a petition backed by progressive think tank the Australia Institute with 16,000 signatures calling for a proper examination of the electoral laws.

Curtin MP Kate Chaney said no the Government had put the bill on ice, there was no reason why it couldn’t go to a proper inquiry.

“Any way we change our democracy needs to be looked at very closely,” she said.

“I hope that this extra time will mean the government will actually listen … and consider what the community wants, rather than locking in a two-party deal that protects the status quo and make the right decision in the interests of the country.”

Fellow crossbenchers said the enormous rush on the agenda was ridiculous and worse than a dog’s breakfast.

Member for Warringah Zali Steggall said the Government should just add another sitting week in December and end the brinkmanship.

“The Government clearly had an issue of dealing reasonably with the crossbench in both houses at times. It’s incredibly unproductive,” she said.

“And I think the deals the Government does with the Coalition are ultimately incredibly dangerous because they are both in the next six months vying to form government.

“It’s a very interesting trust exercise between the major parties, I think they’re trying to stitch up a deal … at the expense of the crossbench, when in a few months’ time, they may well each have to turn around and gain the support of members of the crossbench to form government.”

A motion by Tasmanian Senator Jacqui Lambie protesting the government’s decision to “guillotine” bills has narrowly failed, with 33 for and 33 against.

She was seeking to delay the move to guillotine major legislation to allow more time for debate.

Ms Lambie’s motion reads:

“The Albanese government has guillotined more than 160 Bills in the 47th Parliament and continues to undermine democratic principles by proposing to rush through around 40 pieces of legislation today without adequate debate.”

“By fast-tracking legislation, the Albanese government is circumventing proper scrutiny and accountability.”

“This reckless approach places excessive and unreasonable pressure on parliamentary staff and risks compromising the quality and integrity of legislative outcomes.”

A senior Labor ministers insists the Government’s promised environment protection agency is not dead yet despite Prime Minister Anthony Albanese intervening to scuttle a deal that would have allowed it to pass this week.

Finance Minister Katy Gallagher said Mr Albanese was still committed to laws to establish the nature watchdog and wanted to revisit them when Federal Parliament is due back in February.

Senator Gallagher confirmed Labor was “close” to accepting a deal with the Greens but needed more time to consider the minor party’s proposed amendments, rather than rushing it through alongside dozens of other bills on Parliament’s final sitting day of the year.

The Nightly on Wednesday reported Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek agreed a deal with the Greens and independent David Pocock before Mr Albanese stepped in prevent it going ahead.

The scuttled deal would have involved extra investment for research to combat invasive species and a legislated timeline for the promised suite of national environmental standards, according to multiple sources briefed on negotiations.

The Prime Minister’s intervention followed lobbying from WA Premier Roger Cook and mining and business groups that feared the EPA could devastate the State’s economy.

Senator Gallagher, who was part of private meetings this week where the EPA bill was discussed, played down suggestions Mr Albanese overruled Mr Plibersek after the WA lobbying onslaught.

“I was in meetings which we discussed nature positive, and I agree we were close, but there was some further work that we wanted done,” Senator Gallagher told ABC’s RN Breakfast.

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The Senate has kicked off the day’s sitting with a shouting match as Senators slam the government for trying to ram through 36 bills at the last minute.

An angry Jacqui Lambie blasted Labor for demanding the “the mother of all guillotines” to shut down debate in the rush to vote on a raft of major bills.

“It is dangerous to shove bills down our throats,” shouted the Tasmanian senator, calling out the “hypocrisy” of forcing employees to work so much overtime in the face of the parliament’s recent “right to disconnect” laws.

“To say that I am disappointed in this government is an understatement, it doesn’t even cut it,” she said.

Simon Birmingham, leader of the Coalition in the Senate, chimed in with his support. “What Jacqui said!” he added.

Finance Minister Katy Gallagher defended the government’s actions, saying the legislation had been in the works for months.

It’s D-Day for legislators in Canberra as the government tries to ram through 36 major bills before the end of term, including a controversial social media ban for under-16s, new migration laws and reforms to the Reserve Bank of Australia.

“If people want to sit through the night, we are prepared to do that,” Finance Minister Katy Gallagher told ABC’s Radio National breakfast. “It’s going to be a bit of a ride.”

Ms Gallagher defended the last-minute rush as a natural build-up towards the end of the year, but also blamed opposition leader Peter Dutton’s Coalition for a sustained strategy of “blocking and frustrating” key legislation.

The government may resort to the so-called “guillotine” technique to fast-track their priorities – a term used to describe closing the floor for debate in order to go straight to a vote. The move allows for votes on amendments but without prior debate.

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The Government’s long-awaited electoral reforms which would cap political donations will not be one of the dozens of Bills it tries to ram through the Senate today, after negotiations broke down with the Coalition.

Instead, Special Minister of State DOn Farrell would keep negotiating and try again in February, when Parliament is due to resume.

“It’s off the table for today but Senator Farrell will be working over summer with all senators across the Senate chamber to try and reach agreement for that,” she told ABC Radio.

“We want to get big money out of politics. We want to have donation caps. We haven’t been able to land that.”

Amendments were proposed in the Senate late last night, as independents rallied to oppose the legislation they say would unfairly disadvantage their electoral chances.

She said the Government’s “intention” was to come back in February, despite speculation a March election would be called.

The hopes are for other bills including nature positive and production tax credits would finally be able to pass before the next election, she said.

“This suspension actually allows me to hang out with the people and go protest on the lawns.” Senator Thorpe said.

“It makes it very difficult for the Government to pass legislation because they needed my vote.

“I hope they have a good day in the Senate and they may not be able to pass the legislation that needs to be passed today because they suspended me from participating and they suspended me for standing up to a racist.”

“No-one tells me the rules around here until I break them,” Senator Thorpe said.

“I think they make it up as they go along and that is part of the problem.

“It seems like there’s one rule for white people who get away with racism and there’s one rule for us when we call that out, we’re the ones that are the naughty little black girl again.

“That’s OK if you want to call me that and call me disruptive but I will not stand there, or sit there and be silent when people of colour are being attacked with racism.

Senator Lidia Thorpe has out at the Government after she was suspended from the senate.

The senator was suspended for the rest of the week after she tore up papers and threw them at Pauline Hanson during a tense parliamentary debate.

“I would do it all over again. I will do what it takes to stamp out racism that I have experienced all my life,” Ms Thorpe said on ABC News Breakfast.

“We need to stand up to racism.

“Senator Faruqi and I put through a motion on Monday to inquire on Senate procedures to ensure racism wasn’t part of our workplace everyday.

“Labor sided with the Coalition to railroad that motion and have an in-house inquiry into racism in the Senate that no-one can see.

“We wanted the public to see a proper inquiry into stamping out racism in the chamber and we weren’t successful in ensuring that that can be thoroughly done in a way that everybody can see the problems in our workplace.”