Monday 30 March 2020

Parliamentary oversight of the the Australian Government ceased on 23 March 2020


At 19:07pm on the 23 March 2020 the House of Representatives divided for a vote changing the House sittings schedule for 2020.

The vote was 48 Ayes to 37 Noes. [Hansard, 23 March 2020, p.85]

This change left Australia with no sitting federal parliament from day's end on 23 March until 11 August 2020.

The vote to end parliamentary oversight of government went thus:




The Greens and Labor lost this vote.

Scott Morrison and his hard right allies, including the Institute of Public Affairs, cannot fail to be pleased with this extension of unfettered political power.

The reason the opposition believes that we shouldn't make that decision today is that, as everyone is acknowledging, we don't know where we will be in May or June, and the presumption should be that the parliament will sit. The presumption should be that we will meet if it is possible for us to sit, because, during this period, during a time of crisis, is when the Australian public needs us to sit. I will be more than surprised if we can go from now until August and find that the legislation we put through the parliament today is all the nation needs for Australia to handle this pandemic, all the nation needs to deal with the crisis of unemployment and recession that we'll be facing. That means we will need to sit, so we shouldn't pretend that we won't. It also means during this period the government will be compelled in the interests of the nation to make some decisions of great magnitude. That will happen. We know that will happen; that's part of the story behind the supply bills that have just passed. To have decisions of that magnitude being made without the parliament convening and without there being a question time and an opportunity for people representing the different corners of Australia to hold the government to account is an unwise course for us to take.” [Tony Burke, MP for Watson & Manager of Opposition Business, in House of Representatives Hansard, 23 March 2020]

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