DOCUMENTS

Senator KOVACIC (New South Wales) (15:39): At the request of Senator Hume, I move: That the Senate— (a) notes that the response to order for the production of documents no. 540, tabled on 11 August 2026 (the minister's reference MB26-000390), withholds three documents in their entirety, identified in the response as Document 3 (pages 11 to 23), Document 5 (pages 28 to 29) and Document 6 (pages 30 to 32), and redacts others, in reliance on exemptions under the Freedom of Information Act 1982, which the Senate has never accepted as grounds for refusing to produce documents to the Senate; (b) rejects the public interest immunity claim to the extent that it relies on prejudice to the department's deliberative processes and on assertions concerning the deliberations and decisions of Cabinet that do not identify the documents or parts of documents to which they apply; and (c) requires the Minister representing the Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations, by no later than 9 am on Thursday, 20 August 2026, to fully comply with order no. 540, including production of complete copies of Documents 3, 5 and 6 as identified in the response.

Question agreed to.