Pocock labels electoral reform bill as ‘major party stitch-up’
Independent senator David Pocock says that electoral reform is “well overdue” but “any changes must be fair and subject to proper parliamentary process and scrutiny”.
In a statement responding to the government’s proposed electoral reform bill, Pocock said “no one wants to see a situation where big money buys elections … but any changes must create a level playing field”.
I am deeply concerned that the legislation being introduced on Monday is a major party stitch-up that subverts parliamentary process and seeks to lock out more community independents. This would be terrible for our democracy and communities across the country looking for more grassroots representation.
He labelled the reform as “a secret deal cooked up between the major parties who are clearly terrified of minority government”.
The government has shared no detail of this reform with us since June. These are major reforms with far-reaching impacts and the suggestion that they won’t be subject to a Senate inquiry is damaging to our democracy.
Pocock also said truth in political advertising should be part of the reform “with new protections put in place ahead of the next election, especially banning the use of generative AI”.
Key events
Allan accuses Greens of using Middle East conflict to divide Melbourne
Jacinta Allan was asked about a comment she made on X this morning, that “I’m just as mad at all the others who have quietly stoked this division and egged them on”. Asked if she was referring to the Greens, Allan responded:
Yes, there have been some politicians from the Greens political party who have used conflict in the Middle East to bring further division and conflict into Melbourne. It tried it on in the Victorian parliament, and we’ve seen it time and again, and we’ve got to call this out.
I think the vast majority of Victorians are all pretty sick of this stuff, particularly when we live in such a beautiful community. A beautiful community that is diverse, that does respect difference, that is united, and we shouldn’t let this small group use division and conflict overseas to bring division and conflict to our beautiful streets.
Jacinta Allan was asked if Victoria police would “be ready to go to shut down these protesters straight away if there’s any hint of violence”, with reference to the protest at the Land Forces expo in September:
She told 3AW that “those are operational decisions that Victoria police [will] make on the intelligence that they collect”.
Victoria police did an outstanding job [at the Land Forces expo], keeping our community safe against some just disgraceful behaviour. I will leave it to Victoria police, based on their intelligence and based on their advice, to make the best operational decisions. But let’s be clear, the way to avoid that sort of behaviour, the way to see that sort of behaviour not happen, is for those protesters not to bring that behaviour to the street.
Jacinta Allan describes pro-Palestine protest at Myer event ‘unacceptable’
The Victorian premier, Jacinta Allan, is speaking with 3AW radio about the cancelation of the Myer Christmas windows event, amid a planned pro-Palestine protest (we had more on this earlier in the blog, here).
She described the protests as “unacceptable” and said “it’s just unacceptable that this behaviour is causing this sort of division here in Melbourne”. Asked if she was going to prevent the protesters going down Bourke Street, Allan responded:
Victoria police have said that they will have a very strong presence on Sunday and that they have been … working to engage with this small group. The reality is [that] this very small group … [Myer has] got to think about the wellbeing of their staff [and] have changed the arrangements for the opening of the windows, the opening event, but the windows are still going to open.
Christmas is happening [and] we should be using this time to celebrate, to reflect, to come together on what makes us strong, not let these people divide us.
Victoria police says decision to cancel Myer Christmas window event sits with Myer
Victoria police has released a statement about the cancelation of the Myer Christmas windows event on Sunday, and said:
Victoria police has not made any recommendations about cancelling an event on Bourke Street to mark the opening of the Myer Christmas windows. We continue to work with Myer to support the staging of this much-loved tradition.
The community should be assured Victoria police will have a visible presence on Sunday. Any decision to cancel the event sits with Myer.
Concern as long-running neighbour dispute service cut
A decades-old free service giving neighbours, relatives and businesses a cheap way to resolve disputes is to be closed, AAP reports.
Community justice centres have operated since 1980, providing mediation and conflict management services in New South Wales and spurring similar services across the nation. More than 12,000 people use the service each year in NSW, with 86% willing to recommend it to others.
But its days are numbered, with the government confirming yesterday plans to close 77 centres across the state by the end of the financial year. The shutdown and repeal of the act worries local government and lawyers alike, with the Law Society of NSW president, Brett McGrath, saying:
For more than 40 years, community justice centres have provided much-needed free alternative dispute resolution for people who cannot afford a lawyer or who do not wish the stress or expense of court proceedings. The closure of these centres represents further erosion of access to justice, which will particularly affect people in vulnerable circumstances.
Local Government NSW said it had not been consulted on the closure. Its president, Darriea Turley, said it would be “reviewing the changes closely in an effort to understand any adverse impact on councils and our communities”. Both stakeholders stressed it was crucial the government made sure alternative mechanisms were available.
‘Over-odorisation’ event affecting parts of south-west Victoria
The Australian Energy Market Operator has warned of an “over-odorisation event” near Port Campbell in Victoria – AKA, a bad smell across parts of the south-west.
Aemo said it was made aware of the over-odorisation event at the Iona gas plant at Waarre yesterday evening, which has led to the strong smell of gas. It said in a statement:
Natural gas is odourless. A odorant is injected into natural gas as a safety measure. Customers are advised to take standard precautions if they detect a gas smell or suspect a leak and report it to your gas distributor or a licensed plumber.
Emergency services have been notified, and investigations are ongoing. The gas is expected to clear from the system in the coming days.
Allan responds to cancellation of Myer event amid planned pro-Palestine protest
The Victorian premier, Jacinta Allan, has responded to news that Myer has cancelled an event marking the opening of its Christmas windows amid a planned pro-Palestine protest (we had more on this earlier in the blog, here).
In a series of posts to X, Allan said she is “furious that a small group of people have chosen to politicise a beautiful event for children.”
Blocking the Christmas windows won’t change a thing in the Middle East, but it will let down a bunch of kids in Melbourne. Who does that help? We are all a bit sick of this stuff.
People have a right to demonstrate, no one has a right to divide. We cannot let ugly protests ruin a beautiful Christmas tradition and we cannot let violence, division and vilification ruin what makes Victoria great.
She said the state government would introduce a new set of social cohesion laws:
I will not let the constant violence, division and vilification we see overseas creep into Victoria. I’ll fight for our friendly state, free of hate.
Chaney shares more thoughts on government’s electoral reform bill
Independent teal MP Kate Chaney has been speaking with ABC News Breakfast about the government’s electoral reform bill (we brought you some of her thoughts earlier, here). She said the committee reported “a long time ago” and since then there has been “radio silence on this until the very end of the year.”
Now we’re presented with this very complex and significant change to the rules about who can get into parliament, and how they get there, and expect it to rush it through in two weeks.
Asked if she would have been able to get elected at the last election if these measures had been in place, Chaney responded: “Well, I don’t think so”.
And you know, some may say that’s a good thing, but I think we need a system where competition is possible. We don’t let Coles and Woolies make the laws about supermarket competition, now we’re seeing Liberal and Labor getting together and making the laws about who can get into parliament. I think that’s deeply concerning for all Australians.
She was asked about speculation people like Clive Palmer might consider legal challenges to the reforms – is this something Climate 200 or teal candidates would consider doing?
Chaney said she doesn’t know what Climate 200 or Palmer is doing but said “we need some caps to make sure that individuals can’t have a disproportionate effect on politics”.
But rushing these through at the last minute is not the way to do that.
Pocock labels electoral reform bill as ‘major party stitch-up’
Independent senator David Pocock says that electoral reform is “well overdue” but “any changes must be fair and subject to proper parliamentary process and scrutiny”.
In a statement responding to the government’s proposed electoral reform bill, Pocock said “no one wants to see a situation where big money buys elections … but any changes must create a level playing field”.
I am deeply concerned that the legislation being introduced on Monday is a major party stitch-up that subverts parliamentary process and seeks to lock out more community independents. This would be terrible for our democracy and communities across the country looking for more grassroots representation.
He labelled the reform as “a secret deal cooked up between the major parties who are clearly terrified of minority government”.
The government has shared no detail of this reform with us since June. These are major reforms with far-reaching impacts and the suggestion that they won’t be subject to a Senate inquiry is damaging to our democracy.
Pocock also said truth in political advertising should be part of the reform “with new protections put in place ahead of the next election, especially banning the use of generative AI”.
Monique Ryan says voters should be angry at government’s electoral reform bill
Monique Ryan, the independent MP for Kooyong, has responded to the government’s electoral reform bill in a post to X:
We should all be angry that Labor is willing to rush through laws like this but shows no urgency about grocery and power prices, housing affordability, or reducing the Hecs debt burden before the next election.
The government and the opposition can act with urgency when it comes to their own self-interest, but for struggling Australians they just kick the cans down the road.
Murray Watt asked if Labor did secret deal with Coalition on donations bill
Host Patricia Karvelas asked if the government had done a secret deal with the opposition on its electoral reform bill, and if it discussed this with the independents?
Murray Watt said Don Farrell would have more to say on this today but “my understanding is that he’s had discussions with a very wide range of people within the parliament”.
Obviously, to be able to get anything through the parliament, you need to have a majority, and I do think that it’s important, when we’re talking about institutions for our political system, that we do try to have as much bipartisanship between the major parties as we can.
Will the government take another look at the legislation to address some of the concern from independents, or will it be rushed through parliament? Watt responded:
Of course, we’d like to get as much support for this as we possibly can. In an ideal world, you have every member of the parliament voting for it, so those discussions will continue.
But I guess it’s really up to the independents to explain to the Australian people how they can criticise the major parties for taking donations and yet not want similar rules to apply to themselves. They need to be able to explain to people why it’s appropriate for independent candidates to take donations from billionaires or extremely large entities in a way that the major parties are not willing to do. I think that would be a pretty hard argument for independents to make the Australian public.
The employment and workplace relations minister, Murray Watt, is also speaking with ABC RN about the electoral reform set to be introduced next week.
He was asked about backlash from crossbenchers to this legislation (as we brought you earlier) and said this wasn’t about bolstering the government and Coalition but “about bolstering democracy in Australia”.
It’s interesting to hear independents who very, very commonly like to lecture the big parties about donations and who we’re taking money from, but now that we’re actually trying to do something about this … they’re objecting to that as well. I mean, as I say, these rules would apply equally to major parties to independents.
Host Patricia Karvelas interrupted and asked if this is making it harder for independents to get elected. Watt responded:
I don’t think we are, because I mean every seat, the way this would work is that there would be a limit of a candidate spending $800,000 on their individual seat … And for some of the independents who are incumbent members, they already have entitlements to communicate with their electorates throughout the term, to spend money on newsletters, digital advertising, all sorts of other things.
Cbus takes ‘complete responsibility’ for payout mess
The chairman of Cbus Super, which has been pinged by the corporate regulator for disability and death payment delays, has personally apologised for the debacle, AAP reports.
Wayne Swan, a former federal Labor treasurer, blamed the issue – which affected more than 10,000 insurance claims – on an offshore third-party operator tasked with processing the payouts. He told the Today show earlier:
But we are ultimately responsible for that, and we accept that responsibility. We’re sorry it happened and we’re determined to ensure it never happens again … I do accept complete responsibility for it.
Swan confirmed those affected would also receive compensation. For more on this issue, you can have a read below:
Ley criticises timing of UN vote and says it breaks ranks with US administration
The deputy Liberal leader, Sussan Ley, was also on the program alongside Jason Clare. Asked about the UN vote, she said “we all do want peace” but “I’m not sure [why] the Albanese government has chosen this point [in] time to break ranks with the US administration”.
They’ve also broken a promise there [wouldn’t] be differences between the major parties when it comes to Israel … that’s a promise they made before the election.
Importantly, with the incoming Trump administration, this government needs to work positively and constructively and needs to build trust. We’ve already got Kevin Rudd’s previous tweets up in lights … we’ve had the remarks from Penny Wong and Anthony Albanese made in the past [that were] critical of President Trump. We’ve had them reported and, of course, they’re on the record.
So this government is coming off a low base when it comes to building that trust. Remember, we worked positively, constructively and well with the US, particularly in 2018 with the Trump administration … This is definitely a departure.
Clare disagreed with this, and said Trump wants peace and has supported a ceasefire:
Australia [has been] calling for a ceasefire for more than 12 months. The Liberal party have voted in the parliament against a ceasefire. They’re against the position of the United States.
Jason Clare says UN vote about ‘building momentum to two-state solution’
The education minister, Jason Clare, was on Sunrise earlier – asked about Australia’s backing of a UN resolution to recognise the “permanent sovereignty” of Palestinians in the occupied Palestinian territory.
Clare told the program that “you can’t bomb your way to peace [and] the last 12 months have shown us that”.
The bombing has killed tens of thousands of people in Gaza, in Lebanon, more than a thousand people murdered in Israel as well. What this is about is building momentum to a two-state solution. We need to end the killing and start the talking. This is a vote by more than 150 countries to build momentum, to build two countries behind secure borders where people can live in peace rather than what we see at the moment.
Shorten on Rudd: ‘Australia picks its representatives, not other countries’
The NDIS minister, Bill Shorten, was on the Today show earlier discussing a range of issues, alongside Liberal senator Jane Hume.
Shorten was asked about Kevin Rudd’s position as US ambassador, after he deleted previous tweets about the US president-elect following his election win, and said:
Australia picks its representatives, not other countries. I mean, maybe the Liberals are having a little chortle about Kevin Rudd in terms of Washington, but what if China decides they don’t like our ambassador? What if Iran decides they don’t like our representative? At the end of the day, you’re either on team Australia and we pick our team or you let other people around the world pick our team for us.
Teal MP labels electoral reform bill an ‘attempt to stamp out the competition’
Teal independent Kate Chaney MP has labelled the government’s proposed electoral reform bill as “a clear attempt to stamp out the competition”.
In a statement this morning, Chaney argued the bill threatens the future of independent voices in parliament and said:
It will take time to analyse how this complicated package of donation caps, spending caps and increased public funding will work, but it appears this bill will lock in the major parties and lock out any new competitors.
Popularity of the major parties as at an all-time low, with one in three Australians voting for a minor party or independent at the last election. But instead of trying to earn back the trust of voters, this bill is a desperate attempt by the big parties to rig the rules, squeeze out the competition, and protect their patch.
Both parties are running scared of the possibility of a bigger crossbench that will continue to hold them to account.
Chaney said a new independent would have to comply with an $800,000 spending cap, while “it appears that each political party can spend $90m, shifting that money around to support any member who is being threatened by a newcomer”.
