D-Day for Parliament: Labor’s bid to pass 36 major bills derailed as David Pocock pins support on EPA

A Government bid to ram through 36 major bills on the final day of Parliament for the year has fallen over after key crossbencher David Pocock made his support contingent on it putting the law establishing an environmental protection agency on the list.

There have been chaotic scenes in both chambers of Parliament on Thursday morning as the Government struggles to control the agenda.

It wants to push through a raft of other measures before Parliament rises for the year including a controversial social media ban for under-16s, new migration laws, taxes on large superannuation balances, and reforms to the Reserve Bank of Australia.

But the first iteration failed after it only managed to get support from the Greens and Tasmanian Tammy Tyrrell.

“If people want to sit through the night, we are prepared to do that,” Finance Minister Katy Gallagher told ABC Radio National earlier in the day.

“It’s going to be a bit of a ride.”

She defended the last-minute rush as a natural build-up towards the end of the year, but also blamed Opposition Leader Peter Dutton’s sustained strategy of “blocking and frustrating” key legislation.

An angry Jacqui Lambie blasted Labor for demanding the “the mother of all guillotines” to shut down debate in the rush to vote on a raft of major bills.

“It is dangerous to shove bills down our throats,” shouted the Tasmanian senator, calling out the “hypocrisy” of forcing employees to work so much overtime in the face of recent “right to disconnect” laws.

“To say that I am disappointed in this government is an understatement, it doesn’t even cut it,” she said.

The Opposition’s Senate leader Simon Birmingham chimed in with his support: “What Jacqui said!”

Senator Pocock on Wednesday night was considering making a vote on the EPA laws — also known as Nature Positive — a condition of his support for any Government attempt to ram through other bills before Parliament rises.

But at a press conference on Thursday morning he avoided being so definitive, saying his focus was on cost of living support.

“Yes, I’d love to see us doing a lot more for nature, but we’ll see what we can learn in the next few hours,” he said.

Labor needs the Greens plus three crossbenchers in the Senate to pass things opposed by the Coalition.

It has lost one of its possible votes for the day after the Senate last night suspended Lidia Thorpe for misbehaviour involving throwing paper at One Nation leader Pauline Hanson during a heated debate over racism.

Senator Thorpe had a private members bill listed for debate this morning, but because of her suspension was unable to speak.

Instead, she tried to shout “genocide” while standing outside the Senate chamber, before the doors were shut.

She then made her way up to the press gallery, which is directly above the President’s seat, to shout, “Free free Palestine. From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free” before leaving.

A fresh proposal to still pass a package of bills is in negotiations with the agenda in a state of high flux.

If the Senate sits late, the House of Representatives will be brought back at 7am Canberra time on Friday to deal with any amendments.

However, Senator Gallagher confirmed the government had abandoned hopes of passing its electoral reforms bill today after negotiations broke down with the Coalition at the last gasp.

The proposal, which would limit donations and campaign spending while increasing transparency, will be reintroduced during the February parliamentary sitting, she said.

Independent MPs who have blasted the overhaul as a major-party stitch-up said with the bill now on ice, there was no reason why it couldn’t go to a proper inquiry.

“Any way we change our democracy needs to be looked at very closely,” Curtin MP Kate Chaney said.

“I hope that this extra time will mean the government will actually listen … and consider what the community wants, rather than locking in a two-party deal that protects the status quo and make the right decision in the interests of the country.”

Fellow independent Zali Steggall said the Government should just add another sitting week in December and end the brinkmanship.

“The Government clearly had an issue of dealing reasonably with the crossbench in both houses at times. It’s incredibly unproductive,” she said.

“And I think the deals the Government does with the Coalition are ultimately incredibly dangerous because they are both in the next six months vying to form government ... (and) they may well each have to turn around and gain the support of members of the crossbench.”

Meanwhile in the lower house, crossbenchers Rebekah Sharkie and Andrew Wilkie, backed in by the Coalition, attempted to force a debate on a gambling ad ban.

The Government confirmed last weekend it had jettisoned plans to bring a ban on gambling ads to Parliament this week despite promising action for more than a year.

It’s a sensitive point for many; a committee that recommended a ban on ads among other measures to reduce harm from problem gambling was led by the widely loved Labor MP Peta Murphy, who died shortly after tabling the report.