13th Feb 2014, 12:04 PM – Senate Motions - Statements by the Queensland Premier - Integrity of legal profession and judiciary
Summary
EditThe majority voted in favour of a motion introduced by Greens Senator Penny Wright, which related to statements by the Queensland Premier Campbell Newman. The motion was:
That the Senate—
(a) notes the Queensland Premier (Mr Newman) has made recent public statements that:
(i) any lawyer acting for a member of a motorcycling gang is part of what he described as a criminal gang machine, and will say and do anything to defend their clients,
(ii) members of the legal community, including the judiciary, are living out of touch with society and do not understand what the community wants from the law, and
(iii) the doctrine of separation of powers between the legislature, the executive and the judiciary is less applicable to Australia than other places;
(b) affirms that these comments do not acknowledge lawyers' professional obligations, including their duty to the court, the integrity of the judiciary or the application of the separation of powers in Australia's parliamentary democracy, and so are incorrect; and
(c) calls on the Commonwealth Attorney-General (Senator Brandis) to acknowledge and uphold the integrity of the legal profession and the judiciary across Australia.
Read more about Queensland Premier Campbell Newman's comments on ABC News here.
Votes Passed by a small 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 (87% turnout) | 26 Yes – 0 No | |
| Catryna Bilyk Tasmania | Yes | |
| Mark Bishop WA | Yes | |
| Carol Brown Tasmania | Yes | |
| Doug Cameron NSW | Yes | |
| Kim Carr Victoria | Yes | |
| Jacinta Collins Victoria | Yes | |
| Stephen Conroy Victoria | Yes | |
| Sam Dastyari NSW | Yes | |
| Don Farrell SA | Yes | |
| John Faulkner NSW | Yes | |
| Mark Furner Queensland | Yes | |
| Alex Gallacher SA | Yes | |
| Sue Lines WA | Yes | |
| Kate Lundy ACT | Yes | |
| Anne McEwen SA | Yes | |
| Jan McLucas Queensland | Yes | |
| Claire Moore Queensland | Yes | |
| Deborah O'Neill NSW | Yes | |
| Nova Peris NT | Yes | |
| Helen Polley Tasmania | Yes | |
| Louise Pratt WA | Yes | |
| Lisa Singh Tasmania | Yes | |
| Ursula Stephens NSW | Yes | |
| Glenn Sterle WA | Yes | |
| Lin Thorp Tasmania | Yes | |
| Anne Urquhart Tasmania | Yes | |
| Joe Ludwig Queensland | Absent | |
| Gavin Marshall Victoria | Absent | |
| Mehmet Tillem Victoria | 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 (85% turnout) | 0 Yes – 23 No | |
| Christopher Back WA | No | |
| Cory Bernardi SA | No | |
| Simon Birmingham SA | No | |
| Sue Boyce Queensland | No | |
| George Brandis Queensland | No | |
| David Bushby Tasmania | No | |
| Michaelia Cash WA | No | |
| Richard Colbeck Tasmania | No | |
| Sean Edwards SA | No | |
| Alan Eggleston WA | No | |
| David Fawcett SA | No | |
| Concetta Fierravanti-Wells NSW | No | |
| Mitch Fifield Victoria | No | |
| Bill Heffernan NSW | No | |
| Helen Kroger Victoria | No | |
| Ian Macdonald Queensland | No | |
| Brett Mason Queensland | No | |
| Marise Payne NSW | No | |
| Michael Ronaldson Victoria | No | |
| Anne Ruston SA | No | |
| Scott Ryan Victoria | No | |
| Zed Seselja ACT | No | |
| Dean Smith WA | No | |
| Eric Abetz Tasmania | Absent | |
| Mathias Cormann WA | Absent | |
| David Johnston WA | Absent | |
| Arthur Sinodinos NSW | Absent | |
| National Party (80% turnout) | 0 Yes – 4 No | |
| Ron Boswell Queensland | No | |
| Bridget McKenzie Victoria | No | |
| Fiona Nash NSW | No | |
| John Williams NSW | No | |
| Barry O'Sullivan Queensland | Absent | |
| Nick Xenophon SA Nick Xenophon Team | Absent | |
| John Hogg Queensland President | Absent | |
| Totals (87% turnout) | 37 Yes – 29 No |
Turnout is the percentage of members eligible to vote that did vote.