Mr BAYLEY (Clark) – Honourable Speaker, it is disappointing to hear Labor abandoning their longstanding process. I hear the argument but I do not necessarily accept it. I think there is sufficient justification to suspend Standing Orders in relation to this. This is not two bites of the cherry, this is an acknowledgement that the debate was had, the vote was lost and significant questions were raised about the veracity of the details of the motion the allegations within it. The logical place, given the questions of the House in that context, is –
The SPEAKER – I remind the member that he is speaking to the suspension and must take care not to reflect on a vote of the House.
Mr BAYLEY – is to take that to the Privileges Committee. There has not been time to provide a day’s notice for this motion. This comes on the back of that lost no-confidence motion, and from our perspective, it is entirely reasonable and justified to suspend Standing Orders so as to have a proper debate about what the Privileges Committee could do in terms of interrogating and investigating the allegations and the claims and the observations that we have made.
We think it is entirely appropriate, it is a matter of urgency and the House really should be granting a Suspension of Standing Orders so we can debate that motion.
