Thursday’s private members’ business day saw members first use of the short form motion provision under the new sessional orders. It was a very busy day with three orders for papers and three motions debated, as well as four bills introduced.

ORDERS FOR PAPERS

GoNSW Equity Fund (Mr Veitch, Australian Labor Party)

The motion calls for all documents relating to the investment of funds under the GoNSW Equity Fund to Australia’s Oyster Coast an oyster farming collective, and Stone Axe Pastoral a wagyu beef company, on the advice of private equity investment manager Roc Partners.

The motion, moved by Mr Veitch, was the first item of private members’ business debated on Thursday (see Hansard for a transcript of the debate). The motion was considered as a short form motion under the new sessional orders with debate limited to 30 minutes, as opposed to the standard debate time of two hours, with the mover given five minutes to speak and any other member given no more than three minutes to speak.

The motion was supported by the Opposition, The Greens, Animal Justice Party, Shooters, Fishers and Farmers Party, Pauline Hanson’s One Nation and Mr Field, Independent. The motion was agreed to on Division 24:16.

The return to the order is due on Thursday 27 June 2019.

Land Clearing (Ms Sharpe, Australian Labor Party)

The motion calls for all documents relating to representations made by, or on behalf of, Fairross Pty Ltd, Jam Land Pty Ltd, and Bobingah Pty Ltd, in relation to land clearing.

The motion, moved by Ms Sharpe, was the second item of private members’ business debated on Thursday and was also debated as a short form motion (see Hansard for a transcript of the debate). The motion was supported by The Greens, Animal Justice Party, Shooters, Fishers and Farmers Party, and Mr Field, Independent. The motion was agreed to on Division 22:17.

The return to the order is due on Thursday 27 June 2019.

 Murray River to Broken Hill Pipeline (Mr Field, Independent)

The motion, moved by Mr Field, calls for all documents relating to the assessment of nineteen project options referred to in a June 2016 Department of Primary Industries document entitled, “Pipeline to secure Broken Hill’s water”, as well as the final business case for the Murray River to Broken Hill Pipeline.

The Opposition and the Greens spoke in support of the motion. The government also spoke in support of the motion, recognising the significance of the project for the town and broader local community (see Hansard for a transcript of the debate). The motion was agreed to on the voices.

The return to the order is due on Thursday 11 July 2019.

BILLS

Crimes (Appeal and Review) Amendment (Double Jeopardy) Bill 2019 (Mr Shoebridge, The Greens)

House of Origin: Legislative Council

This is the third bill introduced by Mr Shoebridge (The Greens) with the object of extending the exception to the rule against double jeopardy. The first bill, introduced in 2016, was negatived at the second reading stage. The second bill, which is the same in substance as this bill, was introduced in 2018, but did not proceed to a vote.

On Thursday Mr Shoebridge introduced the bill again and gave his second reading speech (see Hansard for a transcript of the speech). He indicated that the purpose of the bill is to seek justice on behalf of Aboriginal families whose three children were murdered in Bowraville almost 30 years ago.

The bill seeks to amend the Crimes (Appeal and Review) Act 2001 to extend an exception to the rule against double jeopardy in relation to an acquitted person where previously inadmissible evidence becomes admissible and to allow for a second application for the retrial of an acquitted person to be made in exceptional circumstances.

Mr Shoebridge noted the 2018 decision of the NSW Court of Criminal Appeal that there was no “fresh and compelling evidence” that could be examined under the existing provisions of the Crimes (Appeal and Review) Act 2001 for a retrial of an acquitted person. This decision was upheld by the High Court in March 2019 following a special leave application by the Attorney General.

At the conclusion of Mr Shoebridge’s speech, debate was adjourned for five calendar days. Following this, the House referred the bill to the Standing Committee on Law and Justice for inquiry and report.

Mr Shoebridge acknowledged family members in the public gallery.

Liquor Legislation Amendment (Repeal of Lock-out Laws) Bill 2019 (Mr Borsak, Shooters, Fishers and Farmers Party)

House of Origin: Legislative Council

The bill seeks to repeal the provisions known as the ‘lock-out laws’ that prevent patrons from entering licensed premises in the Sydney central business district (CBD) and Kings Cross precincts after 1.30 am. The lock-out laws were introduced in 2014 in response to the 2012 assault and death of Thomas Kelly and the 2013 New Year’s Eve assault and subsequent death of Daniel Christie.

On Thursday Mr Borsak (Shooters, Fishers and Farmers Party) introduced the bill and gave his second reading speech (see Hansard for a transcript of the speech). Mr Borsak noted that he had introduced that same bill in October last year, but it did not proceed to a vote.

Mr Borsak indicated that the lock-out laws have been unpopular with many young people as it has limited their ability to enjoy live music and also their employment opportunities. Mr Borsak also noted that since their introduction foot traffic in Kings Cross has fallen by 84 per cent and 176 licensed premises have closed in the Sydney CBD and Kings Cross precinct. At the conclusion of Mr Borsak’s speech, debate on the bill was adjourned for five calendar days.

Industrial Relations Amendment (Contracts of Carriage) Bill 2019 (Mr Searle, Australian Labor Party)

House of origin: Legislative Council

The bill seeks to amend the Industrial Relations Act 1996 to provide that contractors who deliver bread, cream and milk are offered certain protections under chapter 6 of the Industrial Relations Act 1996. Such contracts will be subject to the Industrial Relations Commission to make determinations with respect to the remuneration of the contractor, any conditions under the contract, and to exercise dispute resolution powers in relation to the contract.

Mr Searle (ALP) introduced the bill and gave his second reading speech on Thursday (see Hansard for a transcript of his speech). At the conclusion of Mr Searle’s speech debate was adjourned for five calendar days.

Public Finance and Audit Amendment (Northern Beaches Hospital) Bill 2019 (Mr Secord, Australian Labor Party)

House of origin: Legislative Council

The bill seeks to authorise the New South Wales Auditor-General to conduct performance audits of the Northern Beaches Hospital to determine whether the hospital is carrying out activities effectively and doing so economically and efficiently and in compliance with all relevant laws.

Mr Secord (ALP) introduced the bill and gave his second reading speech on Thursday (see Hansard for a transcript of his speech). At the conclusion of Mr Secord’s speech debate was adjourned for five calendar days.

MOTIONS

Wear Orange Wednesday (Mr Fang, The Nationals)

The motion of Mr Fang (The Nationals) notes that on 22 May 2019, WOW Day, or Wear Orange Wednesday, was held to recognise and thank all State Emergency Services (SES) volunteers across New South Wales and Australia for dedicating their personal time to respond to emergencies and helping communities when they need it most. It further notes that WOW Day encourages the community to wear an orange item of clothing and post a selfie to social media with the hashtag #thankyouses as a way of thanking the hard work of our SES volunteers. The motion concludes by congratulating the 9,500 volunteers of the New South Wales SES for selflessly giving up their time to keep our communities safe and responding in times of emergency and natural disaster.

The motion was agreed to on the voices.

Referral of the Liquor Amendment (Music Festivals) Regulation 2019, and Gaming and Liquor Administration Amendment (Music Festivals) Regulation 2019 to the Regulation Committee (Mr Graham, Australian Labor Party)

The House agreed to a motion of Mr Graham (ALP) to refer both the Liquor Amendment (Music Festivals) Regulation 2019 and Gaming and Liquor Administration Amendment (Music Festivals) Regulation 2019, to the Regulation Committee for inquiry and review. The inquiry reporting date is 6 August.

The Regulations provide for the Independent Liquor and Gaming Authority to direct particular applicants to apply for a music festival licence. They also provide for a new type of liquor licence for music festivals, and establish training requirements of licensees and certain staff for licensed premises under a music festival licence. In addition, particular decisions of the Independent Liquor and Gaming Authority regarding music festival licences are not subject to review.

The Regulations are also subject to a disallowance motion standing in the name of Mr Graham. In instances where a regulation that is subject to disallowance is referred to the Regulation Committee, the disallowance notice stands postponed until the committee tables its report. Upon report tabling, the disallowance notice is restored to the Notice Paper at the stage it had reached prior to referral.

This inquiry will be the third inquiry of the Regulation Committee which was initially established on a trial basis in 2018 and has now been established for the 57th Parliament.

Climate Change (Ms Faehrmann, The Greens)

The motion of Ms Faehrmann (The Greens) notes that climate change is having a devastating impact on New South Wales with more extreme weather events including bushfires and floods, and 99.5 per cent of New South Wales drought-declared. It further notes that last summer was the hottest summer ever recorded, and that the United Kingdom Parliament has supported a motion declaring a climate emergency. The motion concludes by calling on the Government to prepare a comprehensive plan of action to urgently transition New South Wales to achieve net zero emissions by 2040, including through decarbonising the economy, phasing out coal and gas and switching to 100 per cent renewable energy.

The Leader of the Opposition moved an amendment to the motion to ‘achieve net zero emissions by 2050’ and to become 100 per cent reliant on renewable energy as soon as possible, stating it was an achievable and sensible goal.

The amendment was negatived on Division 13:24.

The original motion was negatived on Division 5:32.

Adjournment debate

The following members spoke to the adjournment debate:

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