AUSTRALIA
that “you have been chosen by your peers as the first officer of the parliament, upholding a tradition that began with the parliament seven centuries ago and you bring to this position a proud record of advocating for a more accountable, more representative Australian democracy, particularly in your role as chairman of the Joint Standing Committee on Electoral Matters.” Mr Shorten noted that “regardless of previous political allegiance, we welcome the Speaker’s commitment not to attend their party’s room meetings. Today is a chance to lift the standards of this parliament, to return them to a level which Australians rightly expect of their representatives— not just improving behaviour but lifting the standard of accountability.”
Speaker Bronwyn Bishop resigns
On 2 August 2015 the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the Hon. Bronwyn Bishop MP resigned following intense scrutiny of her travel allowance expenses. On 15 July it was revealed that Ms Bishop spent A$5,200 chartering a helicopter for a return trip between Melbourne and Geelong to attend a Liberal party fundraiser. This trip would normally take just over an hour by car.
The Treasurer, Hon. Joe Hockey MP when asked about the expense claim noted that it did not pass the ‘sniff test’. On 16 July Ms Bishop agreed to pay back the money plus a 25% penalty. However, the matter did not rest there. The opposition referred the matter to the Australian Federal Police which responded that the matter should be dealt with by the Department of Finance. The Prime Minister, Hon. Tony Abbott MP received increasing media attention
about Ms Bishop’s travel expenses which was diverting time from his focus on promoting his government’s policy agenda and attacking the opposition.
On 20 July the Prime
Minister stated that Ms Bishop was on ‘probation’ although this seemed to confuse matters further as it was not clear what this meant. Following this announcement, further information about Ms Bishop’s travel expenses was scrutinised.
On 24 July it was revealed that in 2006 she charged taxpayers A$600 to attend the wedding of her colleague and former member Ms Sophie Mirabella. Ms Bishop’s office claimed that in addition to attending the wedding she was in Albury on parliamentary business as the Chair of the Family and Human Services committee.
On 29 July the Minister for Communications, Hon. Malcolm Turnbull MP noted on Twitter that he had paid A$12 to take a train from Melbourne to Geelong to inspect the National Broadband Network rollout. On 30 July Ms Bishop formally apologised for letting down the Australian people although she stopped short of resigning.
The Leader of Opposition
Business, Hon Tony Burke MP rejected the apology noting that Labor would disrupt parliamentary business unless Ms Bishop resigned. Mr Burke stated that “any level of cooperation that the Government ordinarily relies on is gone if we have a situation where Bronwyn Bishop’s still in the chair.”
On 1 August it was revealed that Ms Bishop spent A$6,000 chartering a plane for a 160km trip from Sydney to Nowra in 2014.
By 2 August, with pressure mounting, Ms Bishop released a statement advising that she had written to the Governor-General and tendered her resignation as Speaker. She stated that “I have not taken this decision lightly, however it is because of my love and respect for the institution of the Parliament and the Australian people that I have resigned as Speaker.” She noted that she would continue to serve as the local Member for Mackellar.
Following the election of the new Speaker, Mr Abbott referred to Ms Bishop noting that “it should be said of the member for Mackellar that, despite some admitted errors of judgement, she has served this parliament, our country and her party with dedication and distinction for over 30 years. She has been a warrior for the causes that she believes in.” The Leader of the
Opposition, Hon. Bill Shorten MP noted that “for all our clashes with the former Speaker, we wish her well.” Ms Bishop joins only a few number of Speakers that have resigned in controversial circumstances.
In October 2012 the then
Speaker, Hon. Peter Slipper MP resigned amid allegations of sexual harassment against a former staff member, Mr James Ashby and the misuse of cab charges. During the trial thousands of text messages between Mr Slipper and Mr Ashby were made public as part of the sexual harassment case against Mr Slipper. These messages revealed highly explicit and sexist comments about women.
In the wake of Ms Bishop’s expense controversy, Mr Abbott announced that there would be a ‘root and branch’ review of the entitlements system.
Death of sitting member Mr Don Randall, MP
On 21 July 2015 the Liberal Member for the Western Australian seat of Canning, Donald James Randall MP died unexpectedly at age 62. Mr Randall was first elected to the House of Representatives for the seat of Swan between 1996 and 1998 and then was elected to the seat of Canning from 2001. He leaves behind his wife Julie and children Tess and Elliot.
On 10 August the Prime
Minister, Hon. Tony Abbott MP moved a condolence motion in the House of Representatives. The President of the Senate, Senator Hon. Stephen Parry informed the Senate of the death of Mr Randall.
During debate in the House of Representatives, Mr Abbott stated that “Don Randall was a man who had kept bees, tended roses, caught rabbits, played the violin and trained horses. He had more than a passing interest in footy, golf and good wine. Along the way he had been a jackaroo, a rodeo rider and a local government councillor. For 20 years he was a teacher; his work included helping children with intellectual disabilities. All of this reflected a natural inquisitiveness and an interest in people that made him well suited to public life.” Mr Abbott noted that “Don’s motto in the electorate was, ‘You talk, I listen.’ Over here, especially in the party room, it was sometimes a case of, ‘I’ll talk, you listen’—at least to leaders. He was fearless, absolutely fearless, and utterly impervious to political correctness, but he did have a natural affinity with people.” The Leader of the Opposition, Hon. Bill Shorten MP noted that “there was, of course, much on which Don Randall and the Labor Party disagreed, often very
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