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‘Question time is not answer time’ Allegra Spender
Independent MP Allegra Spender asks the PM if he has considered reforming QT “to give a greater expectation of answers and in narrowing of relevance so we can get better answers in this House?” She says constituents have often said to her that “question time is question time, not answer time”.
(They all raise a fair point IMO)
Anthony Albanese points to a bunch of other countries where there’s little to no parliamentary question time.
Most parliaments in the G20, President Prabowo has not answered a question. Prime Minister Modi has not answered a question. In the UK, the Westminster system upon which we’re based, there is Prime Minister’s Question Time for one hour once a week. And the questions are in note on notice. On notice.
He says that when he was manager of business in the House, he implemented time limits for answers and not shut down question time after an hour.
So the answer is pretty much no – there’s no further consideration of forcing ministers to be a bit tighter with their answers.
Liberal MP asks if power bills have ‘ruined Christmas’
Liberal MP Melissa Price takes the next opposition question, and asks if Chris Bowen has “ruined Christmas” by not being able to deliver Labor’s once promised $275 energy bill reduction.
She quotes the Vinnies CEO who says: “The demand for our support services particularly for emergency assistance is greater than ever before.”
Bowen says he agrees with the Vinnies CEO and concedes again that energy bills are currently too high.
He says the government is “delivering” and plugs the cheaper home battery scheme.
I’m pleased to tell the House that 15,825 West Australian families have installed a cheaper home battery since July 1. Reducing bills to zero or get a rebate instead of a bill, getting money in their bank account, rather than getting a bill.
Updated at 23.30 EST
Does Labor want to increase or reduce house prices?
Are the government’s housing policies aiming to increase, plateau or reduce house prices, asks independent Kate Chaney, who says young Australians are getting locked out of buying a home.
Anthony Albanese won’t answer that question directly, but says it’s about “supply” that the government is building more homes, more social and affordable homes, and introducing shared equity scheme programs.
What we’re doing, the member for Curtin, is increasing that supply. We want to provide more social and public housing, point number one. That’s what we’re doing through our Housing Australia Future Fund … in addition to that we’re trying to provide more private rentals and doing that through our build to rent incentive as well.
He also sneaks a dig at the “No-alition” again – which Milton Dick tells him not to say, because he’s previously ruled that the Coalition should not be referred to by that name.
Anthony Albanese in the House of Representatives this afternoon. Photograph: Mick Tsikas/AAPShare
Updated at 23.28 EST
LNP MP’s Cop question shut down by Albanese
The LNP MP David Batt takes the next question from the opposition, asking Chris Bowen how many meetings of the national security committee of cabinet he will miss due to his “full-time job as president of Cop negotiations?” (The committee deals with energy security issues.)
Anthony Albanese takes the question and gives us a very quick answer.
It’s actually a breach of the law to talk about what happened at the national security committee.
Updated at 23.24 EST
Resources minister quizzed on Gladstone LNG project
Independent Sophie Scamps asks resources minister Madeleine King if Santos’ Gladstone LNG project – which signed an export contract “despite not having sufficient gas reserves, forcing gas to be diverted from the domestic market” – will not be extended by the government when it expires in 2031, as recommended by the ACCC.
On the contract itself, King says whatever arrangements occur at that time “will meet the obligations and requirements” under Australian law.
More broadly she says the government is reviewing the regulatory mechanisms around the gas industry, and adds that the experts are important diplomatically.
Australia will remain a reliable trading partner, supporting energy security in countries like Japan, Singapore, Malaysia but of course the Republic of Korea as well.
Updated at 23.21 EST
Albanese hits back at Ley’s criticism on economy and living standards
Opposition leader Sussan Ley is back at the dispatch box and says the PM has “delivered the largest decline in living standards in the developed world, lower productivity, more debt, higher inflation and … the real prospect of higher interest rates.”
Anthony Albanese hits that question right back and says the government has “reduced debt” and reduced interest paid on debt.
Our economy is growing. Very unusually, across the developed world, we have had zero quarters of negative growth. Inflation is down to half of what it was under those opposite. Interest rates have come down three times this year.
He then lists off the government’s key commitments on medicare, Tafe and childcare spending.
Sussan Ley speaks during question time today. Photograph: Lukas Coch/AAPShare
Updated at 23.12 EST
Tony Burke pressed on Nauru deal
Like David Shoebridge in the Senate, the independent Monique Ryan is asking home affairs minister Tony Burke why the signed a $2.5bn deal with Nauru when “allegations of corruption have been made against multiple members of the Nauru government and it’s been reported that Australian bikie gangs have won contracts to manage security on Nauru”.
Is it your position that the opaqueness, wastefulness and cruelty of these arrangements reflects well on this country?
Burke says that he trusts the Nauruan government is dealing appropriately with the issue.
When I last met with the president of Nauru, who I have dealt with since 2013 when I was previously immigration minister, the various allegations were taken seriously by him and I trust that the government of Nauru is dealing with that.
He then defends Australia’s offshore detention regime, and says that the people in question who have been sent to Nauru have committed “serious crimes”.
When they have their visa cancelled it has to have meaning. If we can’t return them to their country of origin them I am grateful that the government of Nauru has given us a pathway for the third country resettlement arrangements.
Updated at 23.03 EST
Watch: Barnaby Joyce announces he is quitting Nationals
If you missed the big news earlier – or wanted to see the whole 90 second speech – here was Barnaby Joyce announcing he is leaving the Nationals, just before question time.
Barnaby Joyce announces he’s quitting the National party – videoShare
Updated at 22.44 EST
‘If you can’t support free electricity, what can you support?’
Shadow energy minister Dan Tehan gets a crack at Chris Bowen next, and says that despite Bowen describing himself as “focused like a laser” on energy bills, Australians still don’t have their promised $275 energy bill reduction.
Bowen agrees that “energy bills are too high”.
He then takes aim at the Coalition for criticising the government’s energy bill rebates and opposing the “solar sharer” program that would give households around three hours of free electricity during the day.
You have to be pretty negative to oppose free electricity in the middle of the day but they find a way. They of oppose the right to Australians having free electricity. That’s how negative those opposite have become … We get it, we know it’s tough but at least find something you can support – if you can’t support free electricity what can you support?
Updated at 22.46 EST
Penny Wong asked about $2.5bn Nauru resettlement deal amid corruption allegations
Sarah Basford Canales
Over in Senate question time, the Greens senator David Shoebridge is asking the federal government why it signed a $2.5bn deal with Nauru after its financial intelligence agency warned them of money laundering and corruption allegations against some of its senior politicians three years earlier, including its current president.
The allegations against Nauru’s president, David Adeang, former president, Lionel Aingiema, and other politically connected figures were contained within a classified Austrac report and aired in parliament earlier this week.
The foreign affairs minister, Penny Wong, said the agreement was negotiated by the home affairs minister and his department – not within her portfolio – but added:
We have zero tolerance for corruption, but unlike you, senator, I will not comment on the contents or nature of classified Austrac reporting.
Shoebridge attempts to ask again but doesn’t get much further. Wong explains the Albanese government understands taxpayer expectations and public funds are used in line with that.
Updated at 22.58 EST
Bowen asked about energy prices
Nationals MP Jamie Chaffey puts the heat back on to Bowen, asking if the “minister who works part-time” will apologise to Australians for not meeting Labor’s promised $275 reduction in energy bills.
Bowen reads a bunch of figures off a page, comparing wholesale energy costs between May 2022 and now – and takes aim at former energy minister Angus Taylor for hiding energy costs before the 2022 election.
And the wholesale price of electricity in New South Wales in May 2022 was $320 a megawatt hour. For this quarter it is $90 a megawatt hour.
5.7 gigawatts of renewables, 1GW of large scale storage and 1GW of firming gas has been added in New South Wales since May 2022, a further 5.4GW of renewables and 1.2GW of storage in NSW have been selected under our capacity investment scheme. That’s delivering. That’s what delivery looks like for the people of NSW.
Chaffey tries to make a point of order on relevance but Milton Dick isn’t having it and says Bowen was directly answering the question which was about price.
Updated at 22.40 EST
Pat Conaghan is booted from the chamber
OMG, it’s our third ejection of this QT!
Liberal MP Jason Wood asks the next question – asking Chris Bowen what he says to the 200,000 families struggling to pay for their power bills.
As Bowen starts his answer, Nationals MP Pat Conaghan (who was already on a warning by Milton Dick) keeps interjecting and joins Andrew Wallace and Ted O’Brien outside the house. Dick tells everyone to “show some restraint” – he’s not feeling very generous today.
Bowen says the previous government had no plans for the ageing coal-fired power stations that had announced they were scheduled to close – and plugs the capacity investment scheme (which backs renewables projects) and the home battery program the government has implemented.
Updated at 22.33 EST
Andrew Wallace is booted from the chamber
Over to the crossbench, Dai Le asks the home affairs minister if he was at the airport when the Australian women and children who escaped a Syrian detention camp arrived back in Australia.
He says a very quick “No”.
As Labor MP Joanne Ryan asks the next dixer, we have our second ejection from the chamber – it’s the shadow attorney general, Andrew Wallace. Milton Dick says, “absolute red line – members have got to be able to ask questions in silence with respect to the parliament.”
We’re only 20 minutes in, folks!
Updated at 22.34 EST