Senator WATERS (Queensland) (15:41): I seek leave to amend general business notice of motion No. 506 standing in my name relating to ruling out using federal money for private coal infrastructure in the Galilee Basin. Leave not granted. The PRESIDENT: You can still proceed with your original motion unamended if you wish to. Senator WATERS: May I seek leave to amend the motion in an alternative means to that circulated in the chamber? The PRESIDENT: You can seek leave to make a different amendment. Senator WATERS: May I first seek clarification for on what basis the leave is denied? The PRESIDENT: There is no provision for that unless a senator wants to make a statement. Senator Conroy: That is not very nice. The PRESIDENT: Order Senator Conroy. At this point, you can either seek leave to move a different amendment or you can make a statement on your own if you wish to. Senator WATERS: I might take the opportunity to make a short statement with the intention that I will be resubmitting this motion in the terms that I deem appropriate. The PRESIDENT: Are you seeking leave to make a statement now? Senator WATERS: I seek leave to make a short statement. The PRESIDENT: Leave is granted for one minute Senator Conroy interjecting— The PRESIDENT: Order! Senator Waters, you have one minute. Senator WATERS: Thank you, Mr President. I find it very convenient that the government has denied leave for me to amend this motion because of course it means that they do not have to place themselves on record as to whether they intend to use federal taxpayer money to bankroll private coal infrastructure to open up the Galilee Basin, which is the whole intention of this motion—to seek clarification on that very point. So it seems that we can only draw the conclusion that they do intend to so use federal money to prop up an ailing industry that the rest of the world is already declining in its demand for. Following the terrible decision of the Queensland Premier, Mr Campbell Newman, yesterday to not only sell or long-term lease Queensland's public assets but to then use that revenue to fund a coal railway to open up the Galilee Basin because none of the other private investors will touch this, I will be pursuing this matter. But we can only conclude that federal money indeed will be committed to this disastrous development. (Time expired)