The Greens are also pretty incensed about some of the changes – particularly the rule that would allow Hansard not to record the names of MPs voting in favour of legislation if there are six or fewer members on one side of the chamber for the vote.
Greens MP Elizabeth Watson-Brown has called it a “stitch up” that undermines transparency.
It gives Labor and Liberal MPs cover to hide how their MP’s are voting on important issues. Voters deserve to know how their representatives are voting.
Labor needs to explain why they want to hide their MPs voting positions from the public. Transparency should be a bare minimum in a democracy.
Among the changes are rules allowing members to be booted from parliamentary proceedings for a maximum of three hours, up from the previous rule of 60 minutes.
Another change would allow Hansard, the record of proceedings, not to record the names of MPs voting in favour of legislation if there are six or fewer members on one side of the chamber (ie, clearly in the minority) at the time of a vote. The new rule states:
If, after the doors are locked, there are six or fewer Members on one side in a division, the Speaker shall declare the decision of the House immediately, without completing the count. The names of the Members who are in the minority shall be recorded in the Votes and Proceedings.
Zagorath@aussie.zone 3 days ago
I found out from this post shared by Elizabeth Watson-Brown, Greens MP for Ryan:
Photo containing the text of Elizabeth Watson-Brown’s quote from the post above, along with a picture of Ms Watson-Brown and an Authorisation by the Greens.
What this means is that resources like “They Vote For You” will be less valuable, because any issue where Labor and the LNP agree, along with half the cross-bench, you will know who voted against it, but you won’t know if the others voted for it or abstained (or were merely not in Parliament). It has the effect of making it much harder to prove times when the major parties act in unison, and thus harder to make accusations that they are “both the same” (or at least are “the same” on a particular issue).