edited
7th Oct 2014
Parliamentary Service Amendment (Freedom of Information) Bill 2013 — In Committee — Freedom of certain information
Not passed by a modest majority
No rebellions 54% attendance
18th Jun 2013, 7:34 PM – Senate Parliamentary Service Amendment (Freedom of Information) Bill 2013 - In Committee - Freedom of information for administrative matters
Summary
EditThe majority voted against an amendment introduced by Greens Senator Lee Rhiannon, which means that it was unsuccessful.
This amendment limits Freedom of Information ('FOI') applications to documents of an administrative matter only, which is a much reduced form of FOI.(Read Senator Rhiannon's full explanation of the amendment and the associated debate here, after 7:30 pm. ) It was introduced after Senator Rhiannon's previous amendment was rejected.(See the division on the previous amendment here. )
Background to the bill
The bill was introduced to amend the Parliamentary Service Act 1999 to restore the exclusion for the parliamentary departments and office holders from the application of the Freedom of Information Act 1982.(Read more about the bill, including its explanatory memorandum, here. ) This affects three parliamentary departments: the Department of the Senate, the Department of the House of Representatives and the Department of Parliamentary Services.(More information about the background to the bill can be found in its bills digest.)
Votes Not passed by a modest majority
Nobody rebelled against their party.
| Party | Votes | |
|---|---|---|
| Australian Greens (100% turnout) | 9 Yes – 0 No | |
| Richard Di Natale Victoria | Yes | |
| Sarah Hanson-Young SA | Yes | |
| Scott Ludlam WA | Yes | |
| Christine Milne Tasmania | Yes | |
| Lee Rhiannon NSW | Yes | |
| Rachel Siewert WA | Yes | |
| Larissa Waters Queensland | Yes | |
| Peter Whish-Wilson Tasmania | Yes | |
| Penny Wright SA | Yes | |
| Australian Labor Party (43% turnout) | 0 Yes – 13 No | |
| Mark Bishop WA | No | |
| Carol Brown Tasmania | No | |
| Doug Cameron NSW | No | |
| Stephen Conroy Victoria | No | |
| Alex Gallacher SA | No | |
| Sue Lines WA | No | |
| Anne McEwen SA | No | |
| Jan McLucas Queensland | No | |
| Claire Moore Queensland | No | |
| Louise Pratt WA | No | |
| Lisa Singh Tasmania | No | |
| Ursula Stephens NSW | No | |
| Glenn Sterle WA | No | |
| Catryna Bilyk Tasmania | Absent | |
| Bob Carr NSW | Absent | |
| Kim Carr Victoria | Absent | |
| Jacinta Collins Victoria | Absent | |
| Trish Crossin NT | Absent | |
| Don Farrell SA | Absent | |
| John Faulkner NSW | Absent | |
| David Feeney Victoria | Absent | |
| Mark Furner Queensland | Absent | |
| Joe Ludwig Queensland | Absent | |
| Kate Lundy ACT | Absent | |
| Gavin Marshall Victoria | Absent | |
| Helen Polley Tasmania | Absent | |
| Matt Thistlethwaite NSW | Absent | |
| Lin Thorp Tasmania | Absent | |
| Anne Urquhart Tasmania | Absent | |
| Penny Wong SA | Absent | |
| Nigel Scullion NT Country Liberal Party | No | |
| John Madigan Victoria Democratic Labor Party | Yes | |
| Stephen Parry Tasmania Deputy President | No | |
| Nick Xenophon SA Independent | Yes | |
| Liberal Party (37% turnout) | 0 Yes – 10 No | |
| George Brandis Queensland | No | |
| Richard Colbeck Tasmania | No | |
| Sean Edwards SA | No | |
| Bill Heffernan NSW | No | |
| Gary Humphries ACT | No | |
| Ian Macdonald Queensland | No | |
| Marise Payne NSW | No | |
| Anne Ruston SA | No | |
| Scott Ryan Victoria | No | |
| Dean Smith WA | No | |
| Eric Abetz Tasmania | Absent | |
| Christopher Back WA | Absent | |
| Cory Bernardi SA | Absent | |
| Simon Birmingham SA | Absent | |
| Sue Boyce Queensland | Absent | |
| David Bushby Tasmania | Absent | |
| Michaelia Cash WA | Absent | |
| Mathias Cormann WA | Absent | |
| Alan Eggleston WA | Absent | |
| David Fawcett SA | Absent | |
| Concetta Fierravanti-Wells NSW | Absent | |
| Mitch Fifield Victoria | Absent | |
| David Johnston WA | Absent | |
| Helen Kroger Victoria | Absent | |
| Brett Mason Queensland | Absent | |
| Michael Ronaldson Victoria | Absent | |
| Arthur Sinodinos NSW | Absent | |
| National Party (60% turnout) | 0 Yes – 3 No | |
| Bridget McKenzie Victoria | No | |
| Fiona Nash NSW | No | |
| John Williams NSW | No | |
| Ron Boswell Queensland | Absent | |
| Barnaby Joyce Queensland | Absent | |
| John Hogg Queensland President | No | |
| Totals (53% turnout) | 11 Yes – 29 No |
Turnout is the percentage of members eligible to vote that did vote.