Tuesday, 30 May 2023
Business of the house
Program
Program
That under standing order 94(2):
(1) the orders of the day, government business, relating to the following bills be considered and completed by 7 pm on 30 May 2023:
Appropriation (2023–2024) Bill 2023
Appropriation (Parliament 2023–2024) Bill 2023; and
(2) the orders of the day, government business, relating to the following bills be considered and completed by 5 pm on 31 May 2023:
State Taxation Acts Amendment Bill 2023
Victorian Future Fund Bill 2023.
We are here today; it is a Tuesday, but it is really a Wednesday. We have very important business to get through over two days, Tuesday and Wednesday of this week. We have four bills that we are looking to debate and to deliver to the upper house this week. Of course I know that those on the other side of the house allegedly want to make a contribution to the budget bills. Indeed we are expecting a reply from the Shadow Treasurer. But it would seem that those on the other side, rather than focus on the task at hand, want to spend all of our time on procedural motions. People want to get up and they want to talk to the budget bills and the way in which the Andrews Labor government’s budget is delivering for the communities that they represent. The opportunity that was provided to those on the other side of the house was to forgo our matter of public importance in order to enable more time to be devoted to discussing the bills – bills which need to be progressed to the upper house in order that appropriations can be in place by 1 July. It is common sense – absolutely common sense.
Let me say this: there will be many opportunities, given the take-note motion, for all members in this place that wish to get up on their feet and talk about the budget. All of those opportunities still exist. But instead what we have seen is an opposition that would rather spend its time – in cahoots I might say, as we have just seen, with the Greens – wasting time, wasting this house’s time, on grandstanding and political opportunism, whereas we have got real and serious business to conduct in this place over the next two days.
This is a very important government business program this week. In fact people would say this is the most important sitting week of the year – an opportunity to hear responses to the Treasurer’s budget speech. This is something that all Victorians are interested in, yet what we see is those on the other side wanting to filibuster and take every opportunity to stifle the real business of this place with nonsensical procedural motions. Now, we all know that if you cannot govern your own party, then you have no chance in hell of governing the state. And what we are seeing over there is a party that is so divided, they –
James Newbury: On a point of order, Deputy Speaker, this is a debate on the government business program. I understand the Leader of the House is embarrassed about the chaos in the Parliament, but I would ask you to bring the minister back to the question.
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Order! The Leader of the House to continue on the government business program, please.
Mary-Anne THOMAS: Once again, I will alert those on the other side of the house that we have four very important bills to progress this week. We need to do those speedily because we need to get them to the upper house, but of course we do not want to constrain members’ contributions. Indeed that is why we have just moved a take-note motion, so there will be ample opportunity in this place and elsewhere for those on the other side to make their contributions in reply to the appropriation bills. As I said, right now we could be hearing from the opposition spokesperson on Treasury matters, but instead we are going to spend our time on this procedural motion. The member for Sandringham is out polishing up his speech somewhere, and you are just denying him the opportunity to come in here, get on his feet, give the address-in-reply and let us then get on with debating the budget – a very important bill that will be guillotined later today, but that does not mean there will not be ample opportunity to make a contribution.
James NEWBURY (Brighton) (10:12): I move:
That the government business program proposed by the Leader of the House be amended by –
omitting the words ‘7.00 pm on 30 May’ in paragraph (1) and replacing them with ‘5.00 pm on 31 May’; and
omitting paragraph (2).
Victoria is now aware that this Parliament is in chaos and the government have lost control of their management of this place. It has been exposed for all Victorians to see. All Victorians now know that the government has not got the capacity to manage this place. But what is worse, not only have they lost capacity to manage this place, they are ramming through the most deadly bills we have seen in this place – absolutely outrageous bills – and we do not even know what is in them. We do not even know what is being proposed. Victorians do not know what is being proposed in this place because our government has not introduced the bills. The taxation bills, which are about to rip the guts out of schools in Victoria, absolutely attack schools in this place –
Mary-Anne Thomas: On a point of order, Deputy Speaker, the member for Brighton is both anticipating debate and saying things that are absolutely untrue – misleading the house – so I ask you to call him back to the narrow procedural debate.
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Order! That is a matter of debate.
James NEWBURY: On the point of order, Deputy Speaker, I moved in my amendment that the house omit paragraph 2, part of which relates to the State Taxation Acts Amendment Bill 2023. I was speaking directly to the state taxation bill, and the reason for the paragraph to be omitted. It is a tax on schools, a tax that is going to crush our schools and non-government schools, and I have every right to refer to the amendment that I have proposed.
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: There is no point of order.
James NEWBURY: This government is proposing to ram through bills in this place this week in a way we have never seen before – in a way that every Victorian should be concerned about. We will have a short couple of hours of debate on one of the biggest spends this state has ever seen – certainly the biggest debt this state has ever seen. We are going to have a couple of short hours of debate on those bills, and the government is introducing a guillotine to kill debate on these important bills. Then they have proposed a government business program that speaks to bills tomorrow that have not been introduced into this place. What an outrageous line in the sand to draw – that the government will now be debating bills that Victorians have not seen. The reason why the opposition is proposing to omit those bills from the government program this week is because Victorians have not seen them.
One of those bills is the state taxation bill, with a new tax on rental properties, a new tax on schools, an outrageous tax on our kids, an outrageous attack on our kids, a new tax that was not even spoken about by this government – they did not even refer to it on budget day – that is going to rip the guts out of non-government schools. Every member on that side of the chamber should be ashamed of breaking apart a tax principle that has stood in this nation for almost a century. It is attacking non-government schools. I can see how quiet the government members are now, because they are ashamed of a new tax on non-government schools ripping open a century-long principle to stop a tax on non-government schools.
This Parliament should be ashamed. This government should be ashamed to be proposing to ram through a budget with almost no debate. When will the opposition be allowed an opportunity to speak on the budget-in-reply? Who knows? They will not even tell us. We will oppose the business program, and we will be seeking to stop the government from ramming through these outrageous measures that every Victorian should be worried about. This Parliament is in chaos.
Tim RICHARDSON (Mordialloc) (10:17:337:): It is great to rise on the government business program, and what a strong week it would be if aspiring, wannabe leadership contenders of the opposition were not grandstanding and performing. I reckon that performance had at least a few hours of work – that was in the bathroom mirror this morning by –
James Newbury: On a point of order, Deputy Speaker, this is verbal diarrhoea. I would ask you to ask the member to return back to the motion at hand.
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Order! The member to continue.
Tim RICHARDSON: Very touchy. The government business program is an important opportunity for people to speak on the appropriations. As we have seen over time, the take-note motion is an opportunity for members to contribute and, like every form over the past few years, for members across the Parliament to reflect on the budget. It is predictable what might be said and what will be put forward. I am optimistic that they will contribute to the second reading, because in the month of May we have had 25 second-reading contributions by the Liberals, and the Nationals have had 24. They are half the size of the coalition party, but half the contributions were by the Nats. The member for Gippsland South has had nine, so of the 24 he has had nine contributions, and Cindy McLeish, the member for Eildon, has had seven extraordinary –
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Order! The Manager of Opposition Business on a point of order. Make it succinct, please.
James Newbury: On a point of order, Deputy Speaker, this is a debate on the government business program. The member should not embarrass the Premier for not having spoken on second readings yet. That is embarrassing. It is unfair to embarrass the Premier like that.
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Order! We are talking about the business in front of the house.
Tim RICHARDSON: It is relevant when we are talking about time and guillotining to reflect on the contributions that are made around the Parliament. A really important thing to consider is the contributions that are made by members across the Parliament. The member for Gippsland South and the member for Eildon – their backs are sore carrying that team over there, which is a really interesting thing in itself, so keep up the good work. But maybe others might want to jump up and speak on the appropriation and what that means for their communities – and on the take-note motion.
This is a strong agenda, not one that is divisive or destructive. This is a strong agenda by the government, getting on with supporting Victorians. After criticising the legislative program that we had with previous government business programs, now they are saying, ‘Oh, there’s too much detail to get our heads around, too much to digest.’ I mean, you cannot have it both ways. Get on board, contribute on behalf of your communities and stop filibustering and blocking this. I will leave my contribution there to give the member for Brighton his time to continue to grandstand and the member for Sandringham his moment to get up and speak on the second reading, and we wish the member for Sandringham well.
Danny O’BRIEN (Gippsland South) (10:20): R-E-S-P-E-C-T – find out what it means to us, a bit of respect from the government for this chamber, for the non-government members of this chamber and for the people of Victoria. R-E-S-P-E-C-T – have a bit of respect. Government members say this budget is so wonderful and that it does such a good job – well, be proud of it. Give people time to actually speak on it, instead of bringing in a government business program that will reduce this to a farce and reduce the opportunities for government members, let alone non-government members, to actually speak on the appropriation bills and to speak on the other bills that the Leader of the House has put into this.
The Victorian Future Fund was announced in last year’s budget. What has the government been doing all this time, to now bring in the legislation, first read it today and plan to have it passed by tomorrow night? What is it that the government did not have organised to be able to provide this to this Parliament and to be able to provide this to the people of Victoria so that they can understand the legislation and actually have a bit of a say on it? There are billions of dollars of taxpayer funds being managed – supposedly – in this Victorian Future Fund Bill 2023, and the government wants it passed by tomorrow.
If the government is so concerned about the ability to actually debate this and get its good budget through, which they keep talking about, go back to the old arrangements. Come in on a Tuesday and do the budget and then have Wednesday and Thursday sittings. Give us a bit more time. Give everybody the opportunity to speak on the budget. But no, no, no, that does not fit in with the government’s media program, does it? It does not work with the media program. ‘We want to put our budget in. We want to go out over the next couple of days and sell the budget and then come back next week and absolutely rush it through with complete contempt for the Parliament and complete contempt for the people of Victoria.’
If the government has got nothing to hide, then it will bring forward a business program that gives this Parliament and the people of Victoria ample opportunity to debate these bills. Four different pieces of legislation – and we get one day to debate two of them. This is because the government is so unorganised, so chaotic and so out of ideas it really does not know what it is doing anymore. You would think after eight years in government it might actually have got an idea. You would think that they might have worked it out, but no. ‘Here we are. We’re into our ninth budget now, and we’re still not quite sure. We’re still rushing things through.’ We do know why they are rushing things through. The Leader of the Nationals belled the cat before: the government does not want to talk about this budget; they want to bury it – because they are responsible for the greatest debt this state has ever faced. We saw in the Age last week that Victoria has the greatest debt of 17 like states right around the world. We know that this government is responsible for more debt than New South Wales, Queensland and Tasmania combined, and we know that this is a yoke around the neck of all Victorians.
That is why this government wants to get on and debate this and rush it through, so that the people of Victoria do not actually have the opportunity to understand what it is about. This government has lost control of the agenda here in the Parliament, it has lost control of the budget and it does not want the people of Victoria to know any more about it. We deserve the opportunity in this Parliament to fully scrutinise legislation. Now, whether it is the Appropriation (2023–2024) Bill 2023, whether it is the Appropriation (Parliament 2023–2024) Bill 2023 or whether it is the egregious State Taxation Acts Amendment Bill 2023 – which is going to be slugging Victorians with a jobs tax, with a schools tax, with a rent tax and with a debt tax – this is a government that has completely lost control. I mean, the rent tax – fancy introducing a rent tax at a time when housing affordability is out of control and when there is a rental crisis, and yet the government is introducing another rent tax.
It is no wonder they want to rush through these bills. It is because the government wants to hide what it is doing. This is a government that has completely lost control of the parliamentary agenda. We have seen that through this year. We have had multiple motions being debated to fill in time – something we have never seen before in my eight years in the Parliament previously, but we are filling in time because this government is arrogant, it is out of touch and it is out of ideas.
Belinda WILSON (Narre Warren North) (10:25): I am proud and excited to stand and talk about our government business program. There seems to be a bit of uppity and highness across the floor over there. They are very uppity, very excited. On this side of the chamber we stand together as a team. We are excited to stand together as a team, and we are very excited to discuss our program that we are bringing forward this week. I am aware that it was two but now one person was briefed on the bills that we bring before the house today, so to say that the member for Brighton did not know about the bills and has not been briefed is not correct. I believe that is not correct, and I believe three members across the chamber have also been briefed on those bills. But we will agree to disagree on that. We will agree to disagree.
Roma Britnell interjected.
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Order! The member for South-West Coast is very audible.
Belinda WILSON: We will agree to disagree. We are talking about a number of very important bills in this house: the State Taxation Acts Amendment Bill 2023, the Victorian Future Fund Bill 2023 and of course the Appropriation (2023–2024) Bill 2023. It is an agenda that continues the Andrews Labor government’s track record on delivering for all Victorians, and that is something on this side of the house we are very strong to talk about. That is because we had an election six months ago, I believe almost to the day, and the people of Victoria got to speak about who they wanted to be in this place and to represent them. They chose 56 people on this side of the house to represent them, and we stand here proudly as the members to represent them in this state.
I want to acknowledge the importance of this place and our collective responsibility to the people of Victoria. I am honoured to be able to partake in debate, and just like previous Parliaments, here we engage in debate. We love to listen to what we get from across the other side. But we also like to strive to be informed and make the decisions that shape the future of our great state, and we are really proud to do that. I would like to assume that what brings us all to this place is a desire to contribute and to make a difference to our communities and to indeed stand before this place, and I am very proud to be part of this Victorian government, because we are forward thinking and we have got a very strong agenda ahead of us.
The bills before us this week particularly encompass areas of economic significance, and the State Taxation Acts Amendment Bill 2023 aims to amend our state’s taxation with reform addressing issues that have emerged in recent years, ensuring fairness and equality for all Victorians. This bill is a testament to the government’s commitment to fostering a strong, resilient economy that supports Victorian households and of course their businesses too. The Victorian Future Fund Bill 2023 is another pivotal piece of our legislation.
James Newbury: Have you seen it?
Belinda WILSON: Yes, I have. The bill establishes a fund designed to secure the long-term financial security and prosperity of our state by responsibly managing our resources and investigating strategic initiatives by which we can all bring a brighter Victorian future. This establishment of the fund underscores our government’s commitment to prudent financial management and a forward-thinking policy delivering for all Victorians in a fair manner. I just want to say that I think this is an incredible program, and I am proud to be part of this government.
Jess WILSON (Kew) (10:29): I rise to support the Manager of Opposition Business’s amendment to the government business program this morning. What we are seeing from this government time and time again is a lack of respect for this place. We have just heard from the member for Narre Warren North about the duty we have in this house to the people of Victoria, and that duty extends to properly scrutinising legislation, understanding the legislation coming before us. We cannot do that if the people of Victoria do not have an opportunity to look at the bills coming before them – putting on the program the State Taxation Acts Amendment Bill 2023, as the government intends to do, without putting that out for the public to look at, without looking at how that will impact those directly affected by the legislation.
The Manager of Opposition Business spoke to the rent tax that is included in that legislation and spoke to the fact that there is a school fees tax in that legislation. 110 schools or 160,000 schoolkids will be affected by this legislation, and not one of them has been consulted. Not one stakeholder has been consulted on this piece of legislation. To guillotine debate at the end of today and to not allow this place to properly speak to and scrutinise the appropriation bills is a complete disrespect to this house and the people who elected us to come to this house. This place, unlike what the member for South Barwon said before about the government determining what happens in this place, is the people’s house, and it is our responsibility to properly go through legislation and allow everyone to have the opportunity to have their say.
We have heard from the manager of government business time and time again that we could have had 2 extra hours today – so generous of the government to allow us 2 extra hours to debate what will be a huge spending budget, a budget that sees us go further into record debt. At a time when this state is on the precipice when it comes to its finances, we are not even allowed or permitted the opportunity to speak in detail to the bills before us, whether that is the appropriation bills or the bills coming in tomorrow, the Victorian Future Fund Bill 2023 and the state taxation bill.
As my colleague has spoken to, the future fund is not a new idea. It is not a something that the government thought up in this budget and suddenly needs to put in place. In fact we know that bank accounts have been established. We know the money that needs to go into them. But apparently we need to rush that through this place, rather than properly look at how that will be constructed or what the future fund will be able to do with the deposits put in there; it has to be rushed through. For those opposite to say we were afforded a briefing at 4 pm on a Friday afternoon before a sitting week on –
Danny Pearson: Do you have other things on at 4 o’clock on a Friday?
Jess WILSON: No, I attended the briefing, but thank you very much for checking in.
Danny Pearson: Did you have other things on? Did it interrupt your lunch?
Jess WILSON: I was there for the briefing. Unfortunately, many of the questions we asked in that briefing were not answered. The detail was not there, particularly, when we looked at this new school tax coming into place, what the guidelines will be around those 110 schools that are going to be targeted by this government so that school fees will go up for hardworking Victorian families – hardworking parents that are doing everything that they can and making the choice to send their kids to an independent school, taking pressure off the state system. Those independent schools that this tax is going to be thrust upon in the coming weeks do not even know what is coming; they have not seen this legislation. What we need to understand from this government is – it is 110 schools today – what does the legislation provide? Are there going to be more schools in the future? How big is the hit list? How far does that extend into the future? Who else are you going to go after in the future?
This is a government that time and time again comes into this place and, for a process that usually would take weeks when we are afforded the opportunity to speak to our constituents to make them understand the ramifications of state taxation bills and the impact of the budget, rushes legislation through this place with complete disrespect for what this place is intended to do to ensure that people have their say. It is ramming it through. So I stand here today fully supporting the amendment to the government business program.
The SPEAKER: The Leader of the House has moved a motion to set a government business program for this week. The Manager of Opposition Business has moved an amendment to the motion to omit some items and to change the completion time of others. I will first put the question on the first part of the amendment. Because the amendment seeks to omit the words ‘7.00 pm on 30 May’, the question is:
That the words proposed to be omitted stand part of the question.
Those supporting the Manager of Opposition Business’s amendment should vote no.
Assembly divided on question:
Ayes (53): Juliana Addison, Jacinta Allan, Daniel Andrews, Colin Brooks, Josh Bull, Anthony Carbines, Ben Carroll, Darren Cheeseman, Anthony Cianflone, Sarah Connolly, Chris Couzens, Jordan Crugnale, Lily D’Ambrosio, Daniela De Martino, Steve Dimopoulos, Paul Edbrooke, Matt Fregon, Ella George, Luba Grigorovitch, Bronwyn Halfpenny, Katie Hall, Paul Hamer, Martha Haylett, Mathew Hilakari, Melissa Horne, Natalie Hutchins, Lauren Kathage, Sonya Kilkenny, Nathan Lambert, Alison Marchant, Kathleen Matthews-Ward, Steve McGhie, Paul Mercurio, John Mullahy, Tim Pallas, Danny Pearson, Pauline Richards, Tim Richardson, Michaela Settle, Ros Spence, Nick Staikos, Natalie Suleyman, Meng Heang Tak, Jackson Taylor, Nina Taylor, Kat Theophanous, Mary-Anne Thomas, Emma Vulin, Iwan Walters, Vicki Ward, Dylan Wight, Gabrielle Williams, Belinda Wilson
Noes (32): Brad Battin, Jade Benham, Roma Britnell, Tim Bull, Martin Cameron, Annabelle Cleeland, Chris Crewther, Gabrielle de Vietri, Wayne Farnham, Sam Groth, Matthew Guy, Sam Hibbins, David Hodgett, Emma Kealy, Tim McCurdy, Cindy McLeish, James Newbury, Danny O’Brien, Michael O’Brien, Kim O’Keeffe, John Pesutto, Tim Read, Richard Riordan, Brad Rowswell, Ellen Sandell, Ryan Smith, David Southwick, Bill Tilley, Bridget Vallence, Peter Walsh, Kim Wells, Jess Wilson
Question agreed to.
The SPEAKER: I will now put the question on the second part of the amendment. Because the amendment seeks to omit a paragraph, the question is:
That the words be omitted.
Those supporting the Manager of Opposition Business’s amendment should vote aye.
Assembly divided on question:
Ayes (32): Brad Battin, Jade Benham, Roma Britnell, Tim Bull, Martin Cameron, Annabelle Cleeland, Chris Crewther, Gabrielle de Vietri, Wayne Farnham, Sam Groth, Matthew Guy, Sam Hibbins, David Hodgett, Emma Kealy, Tim McCurdy, Cindy McLeish, James Newbury, Danny O’Brien, Michael O’Brien, Kim O’Keeffe, John Pesutto, Tim Read, Richard Riordan, Brad Rowswell, Ellen Sandell, Ryan Smith, David Southwick, Bill Tilley, Bridget Vallence, Peter Walsh, Kim Wells, Jess Wilson
Noes (53): Juliana Addison, Jacinta Allan, Daniel Andrews, Colin Brooks, Josh Bull, Anthony Carbines, Ben Carroll, Darren Cheeseman, Anthony Cianflone, Sarah Connolly, Chris Couzens, Jordan Crugnale, Lily D’Ambrosio, Daniela De Martino, Steve Dimopoulos, Paul Edbrooke, Matt Fregon, Ella George, Luba Grigorovitch, Bronwyn Halfpenny, Katie Hall, Paul Hamer, Martha Haylett, Mathew Hilakari, Melissa Horne, Natalie Hutchins, Lauren Kathage, Sonya Kilkenny, Nathan Lambert, Alison Marchant, Kathleen Matthews-Ward, Steve McGhie, Paul Mercurio, John Mullahy, Tim Pallas, Danny Pearson, Pauline Richards, Tim Richardson, Michaela Settle, Ros Spence, Nick Staikos, Natalie Suleyman, Meng Heang Tak, Jackson Taylor, Nina Taylor, Kat Theophanous, Mary-Anne Thomas, Emma Vulin, Iwan Walters, Vicki Ward, Dylan Wight, Gabrielle Williams, Belinda Wilson
Question defeated.
Assembly divided on motion:
Ayes (53): Juliana Addison, Jacinta Allan, Daniel Andrews, Colin Brooks, Josh Bull, Anthony Carbines, Ben Carroll, Darren Cheeseman, Anthony Cianflone, Sarah Connolly, Chris Couzens, Jordan Crugnale, Lily D’Ambrosio, Daniela De Martino, Steve Dimopoulos, Paul Edbrooke, Matt Fregon, Ella George, Luba Grigorovitch, Bronwyn Halfpenny, Katie Hall, Paul Hamer,
Martha Haylett, Mathew Hilakari, Melissa Horne, Natalie Hutchins, Lauren Kathage, Sonya Kilkenny, Nathan Lambert, Alison Marchant, Kathleen Matthews-Ward, Steve McGhie, Paul Mercurio, John Mullahy, Tim Pallas, Danny Pearson, Pauline Richards, Tim Richardson, Michaela Settle, Ros Spence, Nick Staikos, Natalie Suleyman, Meng Heang Tak, Jackson Taylor, Nina Taylor, Kat Theophanous, Mary-Anne Thomas, Emma Vulin, Iwan Walters, Vicki Ward, Dylan Wight, Gabrielle Williams, Belinda Wilson
Noes (32): Brad Battin, Jade Benham, Roma Britnell, Tim Bull, Martin Cameron, Annabelle Cleeland, Chris Crewther, Gabrielle de Vietri, Wayne Farnham, Sam Groth, Matthew Guy, Sam Hibbins, David Hodgett, Emma Kealy, Tim McCurdy, Cindy McLeish, James Newbury, Danny O’Brien, Michael O’Brien, Kim O’Keeffe, John Pesutto, Tim Read, Richard Riordan, Brad Rowswell, Ellen Sandell, Ryan Smith, David Southwick, Bill Tilley, Bridget Vallence, Peter Walsh, Kim Wells, Jess Wilson
Motion agreed to.