14th Aug 2007, 6:10 PM – Senate Social Security and Other Legislation Amendment (Welfare Payment Reform) Bill 2007 and related bills - Second Reading - Delay passage of bill

The majority voted against an amendment introduced by Greens Senator Bob Brown, which means that it was rejected. The motion would have changed the original motion "that the bills be read a second time"(Read more about the stages that a bill must pass through here. ) with the following:

Omit all words after “That”, substitute:

(a) For the reasons set out in paragraph (c), further consideration of the bills be postponed and be made an order of the day for the first day of sitting in October 2007;

(b) Senators who have spoken to the motion “that this bill be now read a second time” may speak again to that motion for up to 20 minutes each when the bill is again called on;

(c) The reasons referred to in paragraph (a) are as follows:

(i) the Northern Territory Government is reviewing the impact of the bills and will provide its legislative response;

(ii) the need to delay further consideration of the bills pending a fuller understanding of their operation and effect is in accordance with the wishes of the Combined Aboriginal Organisations of the Northern Territory and the New South Wales Aboriginal Council”.

Background to the bills

The Social Security and Other Legislation Amendment (Welfare Payment Reform) Bill 2007 was introduced along with four other bills:

• the Families, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs and Other Legislation Amendment (Northern Territory National Emergency Response and Other Measures) Bill 2007
• the Northern Territory National Emergency Response Bill 2007
• the Appropriation (Northern Territory National Emergency Response) Bill (No. 1) 2007-2008, and
• the Appropriation (Northern Territory National Emergency Response) Bill (No. 2) 2007-2008.

This legislation was introduced in response to the Report of the Northern Territory Board of Inquiry into the Protection of Aboriginal Children from Sexual Abuse, known as the Little Children are Sacred report, which was publicly released on 15 June 2007.(Read more about the background of the bills in the interim bills digest. ) That report came after concerns were raised on ABC's Lateline program in 2006.(Read the transcript for the Lateline programs that addressed the issue of child abuse in Indigenous communities in the Northern Territory here (the May 2006 program) and here (the June 2006 program).)