Next week is the final week of Parliament. MPs will trudge off back to their home cities on Wednesday evening after a short sitting day, an adjournment debate and a pre-Christmas drink with Parliament’s Press Gallery.
But as the second of alternating sitting weeks, next Wednesday is meant to be a member’s day. That’s when bill’s suggested by MPs that are not in the Government get debated.
MPs have done away with the last day of Parliament's year and squished up the last two weeks to fit everything in. Photo: VNP / Daniela Maoate-Cox
Trumping a member’s day for fun farewell speeches would annoy some MPs but delaying MPs’ returns to their family festivus trees would annoy even more. To resolve that mini-crisis, next Wednesday evening is happening this Wednesday morning. True story.
MPs really are right up there with time lords for their power to rejig the calendar.
To really mess with your body-clock consider that while this Wednesday morning is busy being next Wednesday evening, for MPs it will still be Tuesday.
As a result of this ‘wibbly wobbly timey wimey’ week there will be four sitting days’ worth of debating time and MPs will pump though the bills. Also, the member’s bills that have just restarted a steady progress after months of inertia will keep chugging along nicely.
The highlights to look out for during the penultimate week:
The Racing Industry Bill gets out of the gate and will trot off to Select Committee. It plans to rework an industry that is struggling (with multiple regional tracks closing).
The Education (Pastoral Care) Amendment Bill, which enables standards of care for domestic students, will work to get itself into a position for a strong finish next Tuesday.
The Terrorism Supression (Control Orders) Bill (which allows police to manage returning terrorists) will also position itself to cross the finish line in time for Hanukkah. These two are your quinella picks.
The Venture Capital Fund Bill is the third bill to cross the line if you’re looking to place a pre-Kwanzaa trifecta.
The other bills looking likely to cross the line prior to the reindeer entering the track are the two farm bills (Animal Tracing, and Farm Debt Mediation), the Credit Contracts (anti-loan sharking) bills, and the offshore rig oil spill insurance bill.
All in all a busy final few days for the MPs (time-lords / elves / jockeys) in a very mixed metaphor end to the year.
