This was the timetable for a functioning democratic Australian Parliament in November 2017:
30 October to 12 November – Non sitting days
13 to 16 November – Senate Chamber sits
17 to 26 November – Non sitting days
27 to 30 November – Both Chambers sit, Senate 2/3 Cut Off Thursday, 30 November
1 to 3 December – Non sitting days
4 to 7 December – Both Chambers sit [my yellow highlighting]
This is how a Liberal-Nationals federal government makes a mockery of a democratic federal parliament - because two of its MPs in the House of Representatives having been found to be ineligible to sit are no longer members of the 45th Parliament and therefore the Turnbull Government has lost its majority in the lower house:
The parliament was scheduled for two more weeks of joint sittings of the Senate and the House of Representatives, from November 27 to December 7.
But the amended schedule will see only the Senate return next week as planned. The House of Representatives will come back a week later, from December 4, and then sit a second week, from December 11, if required…..
Manager of government business Christopher Pyne said the cancellation is to ensure the passage of marriage equality and deal with the citizenship crisis before the end of the year — but Labor has accused the government of trying to dodge a commission of inquiry into the banks while it is down two MPs. [BuzzFeed News, 20 November 2017]
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