Tuesday, 31 October 2023
Business of the house
Program
Business of the house
Program
That, under standing order 94(2), the orders of the day, government business, relating to the following bills be considered and completed by 5 pm on 2 November 2023:
Early Childhood Legislation Amendment (Premises Approval in Principle) Bill 2023
Environment Legislation Amendment (Circular Economy and Other Matters) Bill 2023
Transport Legislation Amendment Bill 2023.
We have another outstanding week ahead of us here in the Parliament with some very important government business to attend to. On this side of the house the Allan Labor government is committed, as always, to delivering for all Victorians, legislating on the issues that matter to people within our community and indeed making sure that the legislation that we bring to this house represents or reflects the changing times and priorities of the Victorian community.
An example of that of course is the Transport Legislation Amendment Bill 2023. This bill acquits a number of government commitments and includes, through the delivery of our road safety strategy, a number of commitments focused on our government’s strong commitment to road safety. And it furthers our commitment to further study the research and to better understand the risk profile associated with those who take medicinal cannabis. Now, here in Victoria – and I say this as a former Minister for Agriculture – our medicinal cannabis industry is a very important industry for people in regional Victoria. As former minister I had great opportunity to visit some of the sites and businesses that are creating jobs and opportunities in rural and regional Victoria through the delivery of medicinal cannabis. And now as Minister for Health I am very well aware of the way in which medicinal cannabis can make a real difference for so many people in our community. When we legislated to introduce medicinal cannabis people will remember that this was done to directly improve the lives of children living with severe epilepsy concerns and other diseases. So we are very pleased now, as I said, that we continue to develop legislation, that we take account of the changing times and that we look to establish a trial to see how we can particularly measure impairment in relation to medicinal cannabis and a driver’s ability to drive safely. We want to make sure that we are establishing evidence-based policy on this, and that is indeed what the trial will enable us to deliver.
The Early Childhood Legislation Amendment (Premises Approval in Principle) Bill 2023 is, once again, another important bill being led by the Minister for Education here in this place. No government in the nation has done as much as the Andrews–Allan Labor government has when it comes to expanding access to early childhood education for three-year-olds and four-year-olds. We made three-year-old kinder free so that every child can access kinder, not just those whose parents can afford it. Similarly four-year-old kinder – free and expanded into a pre-prep program, because we know that investing in the early years can absolutely change the life chances of so many children. On this side of the house – I look around this place, and I know the communities that you represent. I look to the member for Broadmeadows as an example –
The SPEAKER: Order! Through the Chair.
Mary-Anne THOMAS: I am sorry, Speaker, but I feel so strongly about this. I look at the member for Ripon. I know that real disadvantage continues to exist in these communities, and only our government has a plan, backed in by a legislative program, to deliver those changes and lift the opportunities of those communities that are disadvantaged, through no fault of their own, across our state.
Finally, the Environment Legislation Amendment (Circular Economy and Other Matters) Bill 2023 – how good is a container deposit scheme? How excited are we about the delivery of this? We are getting on and delivering. That is what we do – delivering for all Victorians. Of course we have a bit of legislation here that we will introduce to the house to ensure that progress continues as we work to overhaul and reform recycling right across this state.
It is a great government business program – lots to get on with. I commend it to the house.
James NEWBURY (Brighton) (12:58): I rise to speak on the government business program. The coalition will be opposing the government business program, unfortunately. We will get to the substance of the motion, but the coalition proposed to the government that the coalition was so interested in debating the substance of the bills on the program that we would like an opportunity to take two of them into consideration in detail – the Transport Legislation Amendment Bill 2023 and the Environment Legislation Amendment (Circular Economy and Other Matters) Bill 2023 – and both of those requests were denied. I can understand why – because they are difficult, complex bills, and I certainly appreciate that the ministers would not have been able to take them to consideration in detail. We know that over the life of this government we actually have not seen any bill –
Mary-Anne Thomas: On a point of order, Deputy Speaker, the government business program debate is not an opportunity –
A member: What is the point of order?
Mary-Anne Thomas: Relevance – for the Manager of Opposition Business to attack our ministers in this place.
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Leader of the House, the point of order is?
Mary-Anne Thomas: He is being irrelevant.
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: The member for Brighton to continue.
James NEWBURY: Thank you, Deputy Speaker. I understand why the minister was nervous after denying the ministers an opportunity, and I would say again to the ministers responsible for the transport bill and the environment bill, I imagine you are perfectly able to go to the Leader of the House and say that you are not afraid to take these bills into consideration in detail because the coalition would like an opportunity to go through these bills in detail. We saw in relation to the environment bill, which is listed for debate this week – how embarrassing. We have a scheme that is starting after the recycling system in Victoria effectively collapsed five years ago, and five years later we still are not ready to implement the scheme – five years later. How embarrassing. Someone must be being paid by the hour, that is for sure. Five years later we do not have a scheme that is up and running. On Friday of last week one of 600 locations for people to deposit their cans was available and publicly stated to the community – one of 600 sites for the state. After the media drew attention to the fact, the Premier was rushed out to announce some locations, and in their haste they forgot any in the CBD. So the number one collection point for beverage cans in the state, I would imagine, being the CBD, has not got a single deposit point for the community. How very embarrassing. When it comes to business collection of cans – I will speak to that issue more in debate – there are no sites that are available.
So the coalition will be opposing the government business program because we proposed an opportunity for the government to consider two of the bills in detail, and it was denied. The government has also listed the potential for a motion to be debated this week. Our principle view is not about the substance of the motion – there have been motions debated in this chamber that have been extremely meritorious and many members on both sides have looked for an opportunity to speak to them – but we do feel that the government should use the government business program to debate legislation. That is the appropriate thing to do, and where there are motions listed, that is not an appropriate use, because we have seen numerous weeks where sledge motions have been listed and we have spent days of sitting weeks – two of three sitting days – debating motions. So the coalition will not be supporting the government business program on those grounds.
I note the Leader of the House spoke to a number of important bills. I am sure that one of the most important bills we could have been dealing with this week was the member for Berwick’s Summary Offences Amendment (Decriminalisation of Public Drunkenness) Repeal Bill 2023. That should have been dealt with by the house this week. It is disappointing that next week we do not know what is going to happen. We do not know what is going to happen because the member for Berwick was not provided an opportunity to raise what was in terms of public safety a very important bill. The government took the view of pride over public safety on that bill, and it is particularly embarrassing for the government.
Nina TAYLOR (Albert Park) (13:03): I am very happy to speak on this week’s government business program, but I do have to say – I am just going to digress for a moment – it is curious; I wonder, in the opposition’s tactical room when they are thinking up their master plan for the week –
James Newbury: On a point of order, Deputy Speaker, on relevance, this is a procedural debate. The member is not debating the procedural debate.
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: The debate in question is on the government business program. The member had just started and will continue on the government business program.
Nina TAYLOR: Indeed, and thank you for your very considered advice. I was just saying it is just curious that there is a consistency of opposing the government business program over and over and over again, and I do wonder about the rationale – I think the rationale is for the sake of it, so we can make a hiss and fuss and delay proceedings unnecessarily. On this side of the chamber we are very focused on the needs of the Victorian community and bringing forward the reforms that we were elected to deliver. I think we are fully within our right to do so, with the premise that here in this chamber everyone who wishes to do so will get the opportunity to debate the bills, as they should do, this week. I am very much looking forward to that debate. Do we resile from it? Not at all. Do you see me resiling from it? No. I welcome the debate and I welcome the conjecture, and I should say that the government welcomes the conjecture also. This is a space for democracy, and on that premise we are brought here today to debate these very important reforms and deliver on these reforms as well. Because we are not just focusing on creating the legislation; we want to actually deliver for the Victorian community. This is something that the opposition may want to take heed of – that it is one thing to oppose, oppose, oppose, but what does that actually mean for the broader community? I know that the Minister for Health has already spoken to matters to do with Transport Legislation Amendment Bill 2023. There are some important road safety reforms there, and I would hate to think that the opposition were opposing them simply for the sake of it, when they will have ample opportunity to debate those bills properly in this chamber.
Further, we are going to speak to the Early Childhood Legislation Amendment (Premises Approval in Principle) Bill 2023. I know – when you go out in the community, when you go doorknocking and street stalling – how well received these early childhood education reforms have been to date, so we are continuing on with this because there very much is a need. We know, and it has already been debated in this chamber, how significant and important particularly those first seven years in a child’s life are. This is why we are absolutely backing in our early childhood educators and the industry to make sure that they are fully supported in this process. Speaking in regard to this particular bill, with regard to the premises themselves, on the one hand it is about the importance of the curriculum and making sure that young Victorians are getting the education that they need, but it is also about making sure that they have premises that are fit for purpose. Hence it is important to debate that bill in this chamber. We want to continue on delivering for Victorians.
Finally, to the Environment Legislation Amendment (Circular Economy and Other Matters) Bill 2023. The container deposit scheme – oh, my goodness, the excitement around this in the community. They cannot wait. We are right, we are ready to go, and I know there is so much excitement on this front. What does it mean? On the one hand it means making sure that we actually increase the amount of materials that are recycled in this state – that is really, really important – but it also means significantly reducing the waste at the end of the day and specifically, if I take a further limb, the litter in our community, and who does not want to do that? These are important administrative reforms that help to back in the CDS program for Victoria. Those opposite might want to get on board instead of jacking up to every reform that we put in this place. I am not sure it is serving them well, and neither is it serving our wonderful Victorian community. Come on. Come on board, and let us continue driving these reforms forward.
Danny O’BRIEN (Gippsland South) (13:08): I am pleased to rise to speak on the government business program, and as I do I just want to also acknowledge the timing this week. It is 11 years to the day, last week, when we were not sitting, since the parliamentary apology for past adoption practices – a very important day – by the then Premier Ted Baillieu, the Nationals leader my predecessor Peter Ryan and the then opposition leader Daniel Andrews. They gave that formal apology for practices that were ‘misguided, unwarranted and caused immeasurable pain’, and I want to acknowledge the work that continues in that sector, including from the government.
It is important I think this week, when there is not another opportunity, to acknowledge that, so I am doing it here in the government business program. And I acknowledge those mothers and those children who are still dealing with it, and particularly, in my case, Brenda Coughlan of Independent Regional Mothers, who continues to fight for her cohort and for herself. And I acknowledge the government’s decision last week on a redress scheme and acknowledge also that there is still a fight continuing on elements of that. I thank you for your indulgence in allowing me to raise some of that in the government business program, but I do think it is important that the house does acknowledge the anniversary of that apology, which meant so much to so many people.
On the government business program as proposed, I do find it amusing. Here we were two weeks ago being told that the transport legislation was so good that we had 13 days to get out and deal with it and to consult the community and we would have the opportunity to debate it when we came back. We asked to go into consideration in detail, to look at the bill in detail – the government members are so proud of this bill. What are we going to do? No, we cannot go into detail; we are not going to be able to ask questions on this bill. It is 171 pages long. It has at least 10 different reforms in it. I might add that I asked when we were debating that 13-day adjournment if any of the government members ever read a piece of legislation. Based on the member for Albert Park’s contribution just then, the answer is clearly no. I am not sure she understands what this legislation is about.
We hear the member for Albert Park say that the opposition’s tactics room just looks up and says no. Funnily enough, that is what we get every time from the government. When we ask the legitimate, democratic, transparent question of if we can go into consideration in detail, we just get no every time. Once upon a time, when the Premier was the manager of government business, we at least got the kiddies’ ice-cream response, which is ‘We’ll see’. We would say ‘Can we go into consideration in detail?’ and the then manager of government business would say ‘We’ll see’. We do not even get that now; we just get a straight-out no: ‘We don’t want to talk about our bills. We don’t have ministers who are competent and prepared to go into the detail of the bill and answer questions from the chamber about it.’
The transport legislation is one of those bills that has been subject to a 13-day turnaround. The government members are always telling us ‘Oh, you’ve got plenty of time to read it and to consult’. Again, I highlight that I do not think any of them have actually read the bill. Literally today I am still getting responses from stakeholders on that piece of legislation. They have got questions. They have got concerns. I would like to be able to raise those concerns with the minister at the table and have those clauses debated – to get to the nub of what the government is trying to do, whether it has consulted with the stakeholders in the community, whether it understands the implications of the various parts of that legislation that it will be implementing. But we just get the answer no.
It is a bit rich for government members like the member for Albert Park to say to us ‘Oh, you’re just the no people, because you oppose everything’. How about saying yes occasionally when the opposition, or even the Greens, ask to go into some debate about a piece of legislation? The government members all get up and say how proud they are of their legislation. Well, let us open it up for a bit of debate. You could actually answer some questions on the detail of it.
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Through the Chair!
Danny O’BRIEN: This bill is 171 pages long, but they just want to get up and read their 10-minute speeches from the Premier’s office and all move on and use their numbers to just push stuff through without debate. That is why, member for Albert Park, we are continuing to say no, because we think this chamber should be a democratic chamber where people get the chance to debate issues, not just get up and give speeches. That is why we will continue to oppose the government business program when the government does not allow this chamber to function as a democracy.
Belinda WILSON (Narre Warren North) (13:13): I do sit in this chamber a lot, and I hear lots of different speeches as we progress through the week. I do look forward to the day that I come in here and the opposition agrees to the government business program that we put forward, because –
A member interjected.
Belinda WILSON: No, not this year you have not. In the 12 months that I have been here –
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Through the Chair!
Belinda WILSON: you have not agreed –
A member interjected.
Belinda WILSON: I would disagree with that, because I have been in the chamber every single time –
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: If the member for Narre Warren North could direct her comments through the Chair.
Belinda WILSON: Sorry, Deputy Speaker.
A member interjected.
Belinda WILSON: We can agree to disagree on that, but it seems that every time we put forward the government business program it is opposed by the opposition. I do not think that any of us gain anything from sledging particular members in this place about who has and has not read the legislation. We do go to our stakeholders. We all engage with our stakeholders, and sometimes that does need to be done in a swifter manner than at other times. That is part of our job.
We were speaking about the recycling program that is to be launched tomorrow, which is a really exciting program for all of our electorates, on both sides of the chamber. It is a really exciting time for the environment. I know there are a lot of young kids who have been collecting their cans over the last few months who have got them all ready to go to deposit.
James Newbury: Where are they going to put them? What are they going to do with them? The poor member for Melbourne.
Belinda WILSON: Well, they are going to take them to the places where they can recycle them, member for Brighton, and that is the exciting part of this scheme. I know there was a comment made that there is nowhere in the city for the offices and places and there is no-one doing collection points. Well, I was actually at a business last week with the member for Laverton here, and we went to Fruit2Work. It is an incredible organisation, and they are doing a great program where they are working with one of the providers – I think it is Cleanaway that they are working with – where they are delivering their fruit to hundreds and hundreds of businesses in the state and are actually also collecting from those businesses. So there are collection points.
James Newbury: So they have got to buy fruit for them to collect their cans.
Belinda WILSON: No. You would just need to be an existing client. They are helping those businesses out. So there are collection points and there are lots of different ways that people are recycling their cans and their bottles, which is a really exciting point.
What I am really excited to talk about is early childhood, and as a mum of three kids I know how important kinder is. I think the pre-prep program is an incredible program, moving forward. I have two boys that are young in the year, January boys, that I sent at the right age, whatever that right age is. I know there are a number of parents on both sides of the chamber that have probably had that debate over when to send their kids. I know how important kinder, both three- and four-year-old, and also that new pre-prep program are going to be for those ones that are young in the year to give them that early development. I can actually see the member for Brighton agreeing with me. You have made my day; that is so exciting.
Members interjecting.
Belinda WILSON: Yes. We actually are in agreeance that kinder is a good thing, which is a great place to be.
Let us talk about free kinder at this point in time, should we? I think our government introducing free kinder is something that is a great initiative, which we took to the election, and it is also something that has been really strongly taken by the public. I guess you can see that from the 55 people on this side of the chamber, who were elected nearly 12 months ago. It is an exciting milestone for many of us. But it is a very, very strong program. I do not think anyone realises that kinder is up to $2500 a year, which is something, I must say, 22 years ago I found a big surprise, an unexpected surprise and a huge expense. With the cost of living, for those young families it really does make a massive difference.
I would just like to say that I am a very proud member of the government. I think the government program that we are bringing forward this week is very strong, and I would like to commend the motion to the house.
Roma BRITNELL (South-West Coast) (13:18): I rise to speak on the government business program and support the fact that we will be opposing the government business program. The reason we are doing this is because we think it is very reasonable for us to assume that when we come into the chamber and have complex debates that need to take place on legislation that is quite detailed, then going into consideration in detail is a very reasonable request. In the eight years I have been in this place I think I have seen it twice. Now, this is something that we are asking. There are in particular two pieces of legislation out of the three that we will be debating that we need to have a more detailed understanding of to be able to debate on behalf of our community the pros and the cons and the benefits and the challenges. When we are denied that opportunity consistently it should be no surprise to the government that we are opposing the government business program.
We will be speaking this week on three pieces of legislation. There is the Transport Legislation Amendment Bill 2023, which has 10 different reforms within the 170 pages of the bill. I am quite astounded that in South-West Coast, where the roads are so dangerous and are crumbling literally before our eyes, there is no plan by this government to do anything. This was an opportunity for the government to address an issue that is extremely front of mind and concerning to all of the residents of South-West Coast who use these roads, whether they are passengers in the car with Mum and Dad taking them to school who talk to me about how worried they are about these roads, whether they are mums and dads worried about getting home from work at night, or whether they are bus drivers, taxidrivers or truck drivers and it is their workplace that they are feeling completely unsafe in.
We see no plan from this government, and this legislation is a missed opportunity. We have got the Christmas period approaching, and people are getting more and more concerned. We want people to be safe on our roads, particularly as this busy period arrives coming up to Christmas. We see roads like the one from Port Fairy to Warrnambool literally breaking up and crumbling before our very eyes, and we see the road from Warrnambool to Mortlake absolutely falling apart. I could stand here forever and go on about that, but that is the reason we are asking for the opportunity to go into consideration in detail, so we can really press the government for the details on how this legislation will affect our community.
The other piece of legislation that we will be discussing is the Early Childhood Legislation Amendment (Premises Approval in Principle) Bill 2023. That is a fairly simple bill, and we are not asking to go into consideration in detail on it, but once again here we are discussing child care and the opportunity is there to recognise that there is a problem in South-West Coast for families to be able to access child care. The availability is massively challenging. People want to come together and help the government by having an inquiry and being able to present at that inquiry and share the bespoke ways that they can see in the regions that we could address this issue today – not in four years time or two years time when their children are at school and the problem is still not solved. Unfortunately we have missed that opportunity because this bill does not even discuss that.
Then we get on to the circular economy and the container deposit scheme, and that is a bill that definitely needs to go into consideration in detail. There is so much information here that we just do not have because the government is not ready to deliver. This starts on 1 November – that is tomorrow – and in Portland, for example, there is nowhere you can take your recyclables to. You cannot take your containers. You cannot take your bottles. Heaven forbid you are trying to store them and you crush them and then you find out they are no longer able to be put into the system conveniently. You have to try and find another way, to go to some provider who may have some deal with one of the three contractors. But this detail is still not out there. I have spoken at length with retailers, publicans and owners of businesses who will have tomorrow the situation where they could benefit from the scheme, but they have had no consultation – none. There has been no consultation whatsoever, so it should not come as a surprise to the government that we would like to go into consideration in detail on that bill.
We heard members on the other side talk about democracy and process and fruitful debate. That is why we are here. If you continue to deny us the ability to go into consideration in detail, expect us to oppose the government business program. I would have thought that was a very logical step-through process that you could figure out for yourselves. If you want cooperation, give us the opportunity to do what we do on behalf of our community, and that is debate effectively.
Assembly divided on motion:
Ayes (49): Juliana Addison, Jacinta Allan, 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, Lauren Kathage, Sonya Kilkenny, Nathan Lambert, Gary Maas, Alison Marchant, Kathleen Matthews-Ward, Steve McGhie, Paul Mercurio, John Mullahy, Tim Pallas, Danny Pearson, Pauline Richards, Tim Richardson, Ros Spence, Nick Staikos, Natalie Suleyman, Meng Heang Tak, Nina Taylor, Kat Theophanous, Mary-Anne Thomas, Emma Vulin, Iwan Walters, Vicki Ward, Dylan Wight, Belinda Wilson
Noes (29): Brad Battin, Jade Benham, Roma Britnell, Tim Bull, Martin Cameron, Annabelle Cleeland, Wayne Farnham, Sam Groth, Matthew Guy, Sam Hibbins, David Hodgett, Emma Kealy, Tim McCurdy, Cindy McLeish, James Newbury, Danny O’Brien, Michael O’Brien, John Pesutto, Tim Read, Richard Riordan, Brad Rowswell, Ellen Sandell, David Southwick, Bill Tilley, Bridget Vallence, Peter Walsh, Kim Wells, Nicole Werner, Jess Wilson
Motion agreed to.