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| Version 5 | Version 6 |
|---|---|
| Labor steps up its campaign against Senate voting reform – politics live | Labor steps up its campaign against Senate voting reform – politics live |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| 1.06am GMT | |
| 01:06 | |
| JSCEM has finished its hearings. I’ll sum that up when I get to the lunch time summary (she says, optimistically, knowing the tidal wave about to hit between now and question time.) Now I need to catch up with various things in a more comprehensive way. Give me a minute, and I’ll be back. | |
| 1.04am GMT | |
| 01:04 | |
| More from party room. As we predicted .. | |
| Complaints raised in Coalition party room about the tax reform process. Tony Abbott also urged lower taxes through lower spending | |
| 1.02am GMT | |
| 01:02 | |
| There’s been a brief barney in JSCEM over whether Druery should have to disclose whether or not he’s paid for his advice on preference deals. A question about income was ruled out of order earlier, but government MPs on the committee think they’d like an answer to the question. | |
| 12.58am GMT | |
| 00:58 | |
| Back to JSCEM, Druery is insisting the Senate reform package will give the Coalition a blocking majority of 38 in some elections – as well as snuffing out the micro-parties. He thinks Nick Xenophon has taken an unfortunate decision in naming his political movement after himself: that increases the likelihood that the movement will extinguish itself once he retires. | |
| 12.55am GMT | |
| 00:55 | |
| Just by the by, the first reports, post Coalition party room, are beginning to lob in. Phil Coorey from the Financial Review. | |
| Former prime minister Tony Abbott has raised the temperature inside the Coalition over tax reform by calling on Malcolm Turnbull to make tough decisions to cut spending if he wanted to fund tax cuts. | |
| Mr Abbott, who as prime minister opposed tinkering with superannuation, negative gearing and the GST, told Tuesday’s weekly Coalition party room meeting “the only credible way to reduce taxes is to reduce spending”. | |
| During discussion on tax reform, he said it was “time for the leadership to take on the savings challenge again”. | |
| 12.42am GMT | |
| 00:42 | |
| Lee Rhiannon is pressing Druery on the appropriateness of his conduct. Druery is inclined to give as good as he gets. | |
| Glenn Druery | |
| As I recall it was this so-called flawed electoral system that put you there in the first place. | |
| The reality is you benefitted from a form of electoral subsidy – and now you want to pull up the draw bridge. | |
| 12.38am GMT | |
| 00:38 | |
| Green Senator Lee Rhiannon would like to know how many parties Druery has helped to set up. How many before the NSW election? | |
| Glenn Druery | |
| Look that was a long time ago, I don’t recall how many people I advised. It was a lot. | |
| Pressed, he thinks about 40 parties. | |
| Lee Rhiannon | |
| Q: Were you paid to set up parties to funnel votes in group voting tickets? | |
| The JSCEM chair rules that question out of order. | |
| Updated | |
| at 12.59am GMT | |
| 12.34am GMT | 12.34am GMT |
| 00:34 | 00:34 |
| Druery says the current system has delivered diversity in the Senate. He says Ricky Muir is a real person and now he’s a senator. That trend should continue. | |
| He’s challenged by the JSCEM chair, who says the reason people like Muir are in the Senate is a consequence of a bunch of highly complex preference deals. That’s right, isn’t it? Druery concedes the point. | He’s challenged by the JSCEM chair, who says the reason people like Muir are in the Senate is a consequence of a bunch of highly complex preference deals. That’s right, isn’t it? Druery concedes the point. |
| Updated | |
| at 12.59am GMT | |
| 12.30am GMT | 12.30am GMT |
| 00:30 | 00:30 |
| Scott Mitchell has been excused at JSCEM and replaced by Glenn Druery, the artist both formerly and currently known as the preference whisperer. He says he starts up small parties, that’s his business. The major parties now seem to have a problem with smaller parties getting elected, he says. | Scott Mitchell has been excused at JSCEM and replaced by Glenn Druery, the artist both formerly and currently known as the preference whisperer. He says he starts up small parties, that’s his business. The major parties now seem to have a problem with smaller parties getting elected, he says. |
| Glenn Druery | Glenn Druery |
| It’s almost a form of school yard bullying. | It’s almost a form of school yard bullying. |
| He says the changes mean the only party that will be able to control the Senate in the future will be the Coalition. Labor, he contends, has no chance. This set of reforms will force Labor into a formal coalition with the Greens. | He says the changes mean the only party that will be able to control the Senate in the future will be the Coalition. Labor, he contends, has no chance. This set of reforms will force Labor into a formal coalition with the Greens. |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 12.31am GMT | at 12.31am GMT |
| 12.22am GMT | 12.22am GMT |
| 00:22 | 00:22 |
| Tony Basil Nutt. | Tony Basil Nutt. |
| 12.19am GMT | 12.19am GMT |
| 00:19 | 00:19 |
| Scott Mitchell, the director of the National party, has replaced Nutt in the chair at JSCEM. David Leyonhjelm wants to know whether Mitchell is worried about the implications for the National party in the event it wants to run a separate Senate ticket to the Liberal party in some states, like it currently does in West Australia. You people might poll like a micro-party in that event, is Leyonhjelm’s point. Mitchell says he isn’t worried. | Scott Mitchell, the director of the National party, has replaced Nutt in the chair at JSCEM. David Leyonhjelm wants to know whether Mitchell is worried about the implications for the National party in the event it wants to run a separate Senate ticket to the Liberal party in some states, like it currently does in West Australia. You people might poll like a micro-party in that event, is Leyonhjelm’s point. Mitchell says he isn’t worried. |
| 12.08am GMT | 12.08am GMT |
| 00:08 | 00:08 |
| The minister who is not in the hearing, the special minister of state, Mathias Cormann, chimes in with the fob off from the Twitterverse. | The minister who is not in the hearing, the special minister of state, Mathias Cormann, chimes in with the fob off from the Twitterverse. |
| People voting below the line already have the power to direct their preferences according to their wishes. Above the line they don't. #JSCEM | People voting below the line already have the power to direct their preferences according to their wishes. Above the line they don't. #JSCEM |
| 12.07am GMT | 12.07am GMT |
| 00:07 | 00:07 |
| Nick Xenophon is persisting in the hearing this morning asking witnesses whether or not the voting reform package could be amended to fix the current disparity between voting above the line and below the line. | Nick Xenophon is persisting in the hearing this morning asking witnesses whether or not the voting reform package could be amended to fix the current disparity between voting above the line and below the line. |
| Given he’s a supporter of the government’s proposal, it’s interesting how persistent he’s being with these questions. Nutt fobs him off, politely. | Given he’s a supporter of the government’s proposal, it’s interesting how persistent he’s being with these questions. Nutt fobs him off, politely. |
| 12.05am GMT | 12.05am GMT |
| 00:05 | 00:05 |
| Labor senator Kim Carr asks Nutt whether there have been preference negotiations between the Liberal party and the Greens for inner city seats in the House of Representatives. | Labor senator Kim Carr asks Nutt whether there have been preference negotiations between the Liberal party and the Greens for inner city seats in the House of Representatives. |
| Nutt answers with a general formulation. It’s an election year ... parties have those discussions, he says. | Nutt answers with a general formulation. It’s an election year ... parties have those discussions, he says. |
| Carr says this answer confirms preference negotiations have been a factor here. | Carr says this answer confirms preference negotiations have been a factor here. |
| Tony Nutt: | Tony Nutt: |
| I’m not confirming anything, senator. That’s you trying to get something for the 12 o’clock news. Senator Faulkner used to do that too, he was just much better at it. | I’m not confirming anything, senator. That’s you trying to get something for the 12 o’clock news. Senator Faulkner used to do that too, he was just much better at it. |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 12.14am GMT | at 12.14am GMT |
| 11.58pm GMT | 11.58pm GMT |
| 23:58 | 23:58 |
| All the channel surfing required this morning is preventing me from catching some of the best lines of various proceedings. In the JSCEM, David Leyonhjelm has just asked a question about Antony Green. I think he was trying to discount one of his points on the basis of a legal action (but I didn’t hear the full exchange.) | All the channel surfing required this morning is preventing me from catching some of the best lines of various proceedings. In the JSCEM, David Leyonhjelm has just asked a question about Antony Green. I think he was trying to discount one of his points on the basis of a legal action (but I didn’t hear the full exchange.) |
| Tony Nutt brushes this off. He notes that Green works for the ABC .. | Tony Nutt brushes this off. He notes that Green works for the ABC .. |
| ... which, last time I looked, was not a lickspittle apologist for my party. | ... which, last time I looked, was not a lickspittle apologist for my party. |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 12.14am GMT | at 12.14am GMT |