MOTIONS › Minister for Energy and Emissions Reduction
Senator BERNARDI (South Australia) (16:18): On a point of order: both the major parties deny denied me leave to make a short statement earlier. In light of your ruling that you didn't hear an affirmative to grant leave, I'd appeal to you that that's an inappropriate ruling, because when you said, 'Is leave granted? There being no objection, leave is granted,' no-one objected to granting me leave, so I should have been entitled to make a statement relating to the factual accuracy of the Greens' motion. The DEPUTY PRESIDENT: Senator Bernardi, when I denied you leave, I was given no guidance from either side. Normally, I would get some indication by a hand movement that one minute is granted. Indeed, when you stood a second time there was a second opportunity for someone to say yes to that leave, but that wasn't forthcoming either. Senator BERNARDI: I labour the point: 'There being no objection, leave is granted' is the correct result. There was no objection to granting me leave. I recognise an error may have occurred, but, in light of the change that you've made in the determinations in this series of divisions, I think we have to acknowledge that I was unfairly denied the opportunity to make a short statement as to the factual accuracies of the motion that was passed by this chamber. The DEPUTY PRESIDENT: I'm at the discretion of senators. If you wish to seek leave to make a short statement now, that is within your rights. Senator BERNARDI: I seek leave to make a brief statement relating to motion No. 129. The DEPUTY PRESIDENT: Leave is granted for one minute. Senator BERNARDI: I thank the Senate. I really want to put on the record about the motion by the Greens, whilst they were trying to be clever about the Earth being round and the moon-landing and so forth in relation to climate change, that I really didn't recognise that they worshipped and were so desperate to align themselves with the Northern Hemisphere, including the Trump presidency, by changing the date in Australia of when man landed on the moon. It was actually 21 July 1969, not 20 July as the Greens would have you believe. Honourable senators interjecting— Senator BERNARDI: I hear the interjection: 'Tell NASA that!' Unfortunately, Senator Whish-Wilson and Senator Di Natale, we are in the Southern Hemisphere. You are senators for Australia. You are senators in the Australian parliament. You are not part of the Donald Trump or the Kennedy or the Clinton administration, no matter how much you'd like to be. So, please, stick to the facts, get your motions accurate in this place and then maybe, just maybe, there will be less cynicism about the Greens and your motions.