source : the age
Welcome to the first question time of the sitting week.
You can follow the live stream below.
We are more than halfway through question time, and so far, there has been just one warning given.
That honour has gone to deputy Nationals leader Darren Chester.
“The member for Gippsland will cease interjecting for the remainder of question time,” Speaker Milton Dick said a short while ago.
This occurred while the prime minister was once again answering a question about inflation and the economy, which seems to be the Coalition’s preferred topic of the day.
Minister for Industry and Innovation Tim Ayres has slammed One Nation senator Malcolm Roberts for questioning the idea that designating “renewable energy zones” across the country is an optimal pathway for the country.
“There are innumerable CSIRO reports,” Ayres said in response to Roberts, who claimed during a Senate estimates hearing this afternoon it was “public knowledge” that these zones were economically distorting.
Renewable Energy Zones are regions – such as the NSW region of New England – designated by the government for co-locating renewable energy generation, storage and transmission infrastructure.
“I understand that it’s fashionable amongst One Nation party representatives to denigrate the work of Australian scientists in our premier national science organisation,” Ayres said. “We rely upon the experts, not the social media posters and the cartoonists. We rely upon the evidence, and the evidence is very clear.”
Returning to question time, and the opposition is not holding back from sharp questions.
Shadow treasurer Tim Wilson just asked about inflation and threw in a “spending addiction” barb.
But there has been restraint in both the questions and answers when it comes to overall tone and delivery. Gone is the usual shouting, arm-waving or occasional insult. Either side looks less like a football match and more like a church pew.
Take, for example, the backbenches. The usual heckling is nowhere to be found, and Speaker Milton Dick has so far not had to adjudicate points of order or remind MPs not to interject.
Instead of a witty reply to Wilson’s question, Albanese said: “I thank the member for his question. And under this government, real annual spending growth is … less than half of what it was before we were elected.“
The prime minister peppered his reply with phrases like “proper consideration” and “positive difference”.
Minister for Industry and Innovation Tim Ayres says there has been “significant wages growth” and 1.4 million jobs created by the government, but that the environment department does not measure these data points specifically in the renewables sector.
Pressed by Liberal senator Susan McDonald about the number of jobs and salaries in renewables, hydro and critical minerals projects, during a Senate estimates hearing this afternoon, Ayres said the data was largely collected by the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
“If you’re not measuring the type of job, where it is, how many there are, what the average salary is, so that we can start measuring, well, are we better or worse off … then how can we have a sensible policy discussion about whether or not that’s good or bad?” McDonald asked.
“The ABS does all the data work that you’d want, and you’re welcome to talk to them,” Ayres replied.
Environment department secretary Mike Kaiser said the department “wouldn’t seek to unnecessarily duplicate the work of the Australian Bureau of Statistics”.
Meanwhile, in the Mural Hall, Greens leader David Shoebridge wanted to talk about Helen Haines, but the questions were all about Senator Jordon Steele-John, who took leave after seven Greens members asked for an investigation into allegations the WA senator had made inappropriate comments to women.
Late on October 18, Steele-John accused Shoebridge on Instagram of pressuring him to take leave, describing the decision to reveal he was on leave as “a bad call”.
Steele-John on the weekend briefly released the text of the letter on his social media accounts as he revealed he would not be attending Senate estimates – before deleting the letter: “I’m now not sure that was the right call, and I’ve taken it down,” he wrote.
Shoebridge said it was Steele-John who made the decision to go on leave and “it accords with what I understand community expectations are”.
While the Greens leader did not criticise Steele-John’s Instagram posts, he said: “I think the very worst thing we can do in those circumstances is to have it play out while the independent inquiry is in the process of commencing its work. To have it play out in a media exchange, that is not respectful of the issues.”
Employment specialist law firm Modern Legal has been appointed to run the inquiry.
Question time has begun in the House of Representatives, and it is a rather sombre affair after MPs from across the aisle paid tribute to injured independent Helen Haines.
The first question was from Opposition Leader Angus Taylor, who asked Anthony Albanese how many small businesses have to close “for the prime minister to axe his taxes on capital gains [and] trusts”.
When he rose to his feet, Albanese thanked Taylor for the question, before pointing out there are any extra 265,000 small businesses than when Labor came to office. The EU free trade deal also got a shout-out.
The second time he rose to spoke, Taylor said he was delighted to be in Sydney on Sunday for the opening of the new Western Sydney Airport.
So far, the temperature has definitely been brought down. Many MPs on both sides of the chamber continue to wear orange or white jackets adorned with flowers or orange pins.
Welcome to the first question time of the sitting week.
You can follow the live stream below.
Among the many to pay tribute to Helen Haines today was her crossbench colleague Allegra Spender.
Here’s what Spender told the House:
“Many have spoken about your kindness and generosity, and praised your decency and respect that you bring to this place.
“Phil [Haines] told us about your first words … when you woke up after the attack, and said that your first concerns when you awoke were for your staff and gratitude to the first responders, nurses and bystanders.
“That exactly speaks to the character of who you are.”
Haines’ condition was downgraded from critical to serious but stable on Saturday, five days after she was struck by a four-wheel-drive outside her office in north-east Victoria.
As tributes continue for Helen Haines and her constituents in the lower house, photographs tell a story of a house united in grief and appreciation.
It is not only Haines’ crossbench comrades wearing orange in solidarity: MPs from both major parties have donned bright orange outfits.
When the time came for her tribute, independent MP Allegra Spender said there was another, more enduring ways the parliament could honour her: change.
Independent MP Kate Chaney has spoken to the chamber about the impact Helen Haines had on her political life.
“When I was first elected and didn’t really know how to do this job, Helen was very generous and invited Monique Ryan and I to go and spend the day in her office in Wangaratta, where she taught me everything that I needed to know about how to do the job. And really, that set the tone for me,” Chaney said.
“I could see that it could be done. You could have stability and strength. You can hold government to account and make a point without being disrespectful. Helen does not need to belittle anyone and always argues the issue rather than attacking the person. And I still, my greatest wish is that I could be Helen when I grow up.”
The MP committed to sign a civility pledge, which was backed by Haines before the attack, and calls on parliamentarians to “act with honesty, respect and compassion” in their political lives.
