DOCUMENTS

Senator GALLAGHER (Australian Capital Territory—Minister for Finance, Minister for the Public Service, Minister for Women, Minister for Government Services and Manager of Government Business in the Senate) (16:32): I seek leave to make a statement. The PRESIDENT: Leave is granted. Senator GALLAGHER: The government will be opposing this motion, and I would like to take the time to go through the reasons why.

Firstly, on the document itself, this report was commissioned by me for the purposes of looking at how we improve appointments to boards and committees across government in recognition of the culture of jobs for mates that had existed under the former government. I voluntarily said that I would be releasing that report. I said that at the time.

I was not forced to say that. I was not asked to say that. I said I would, and I will.

On the issue of the report and the motions that have been before here twice seeking that report, the government has quite rightly said that this is a matter that the cabinet is considering. I note in Senator Pocock's motion, as he grins up there in the corner, that he says that Odgers' says that— Honourable senators interjecting— Senator GALLAGHER: No; it's not time.

I sought leave to make a statement. No-one gave me time. The PRESIDENT: Minister Gallagher, the opposition did say one minute.

Senator GALLAGHER: I didn't hear one minute. Given the magnitude of what is about to happen here, I seek leave to make a further statement. The PRESIDENT: Leave is granted for two minutes.

Senator GALLAGHER: On that—that Odgers' doesn't support the stamping of a document merely being stamped as cabinet—it is not. I had a meeting this week on that report. I am discussing it with a number of officers as we resolve the government's position on this.

It will be released when that work is finished. On OPDs, in this place, as Senator Hanson-Young's drawn to everyone's attention, this is being abused. It's being used like questions on notice.

Senator Pocock uses former prime minister Keating as an example. During the Keating government, there were 53 OPDs—when you say 93 per cent were complied with, there were 53. We have had nearly 100 in the last few sitting weeks.

That's the scale of what we were dealing with. There were 336 OPDs agreed to in the 47th Parliament. Some of those were for documents that are publicly available.

Some of them had a scope that extended to thousands and thousands of pages, and some of them were required to be complied with within timeframes that are simply unreasonable. On the question time changes, what the Senate is going to do here is rip up the convention of how question time has applied in this place, with consensus, and it will deny non-executive-government members the opportunity to answer questions.

So, when everyone comes in here and says everybody has a right to ask questions, this motion seeks to deny my colleagues the right to ask questions. That is what is happening here, on a document that will be released with OPDs. That section needs to be reformed because we have complied with more OPDs than any government in the history of this chamber.

The PRESIDENT: Order! Before I continue, I called order about three or four times. All of you on my right are not even in your correct seats, and you still continued the disorder.

Senator David Pocock: I want to raise a point of order on misleading the Senate, and maybe Senator Gallagher could correct that. The amended motion actually doesn't remove any dorothy dixer questions from the government. The PRESIDENT: Senator Pocock, that is a debating point.