Senator McKENZIE (Victoria—Leader of the Nationals in the Senate) (16:13): I rise to speak to the suspension. The urgency of it, I would argue, is severely lacking. I would be calling Minister Collins, the agriculture minister, whose staff I'm sure will be watching in this chamber, to please reach out to Senator Mulholland, reach out to colleagues— The PRESIDENT: Senator McKenzie, you've been very quick on your feet to draw people to the issue of the suspension— Senator McKENZIE: The urgency of the suspension— The PRESIDENT: You need to get there pretty quick because I haven't heard it yet, so please continue. Senator McKENZIE: I'll start again. I rise to speak on the lack of urgency on this suspension, because having been the minister for agriculture of this great country, I can say that my door was always open to every single backbencher, every member of the Labor Party—had they ever chosen to come and talk to me about agriculture—and every member of the parliament if they wanted to actually raise an issue about agriculture. So to Minister Collins, who has the great privilege of being the agriculture minister, you've heard Senator Mulholland talk about Queensland cane farmers— The PRESIDENT: Senator Ayres? Senator Ayres: On relevance to the urgency, I'm not sure what agricultural policy has to do with it. The PRESIDENT: Senator McKenzie, I am going to draw you to the issue of the suspension. The issue of the suspension is whether you believe it is urgent or not urgent. That is where your remarks need to go. It's not about visiting ministers or anything like that but about why it's either relevant or not relevant. Senator McKENZIE: As I understood Senator Mulholland's request for urgency in her question, it was about concern for Queensland cane farmers and other farmers in regional Queensland that she's met. She had a question that was so urgent she needed to ask it today. My response to that is: she should be able to knock on the door of her own colleague Minister Collins and ask the question of her and not just for the cane farmers—they might want to get involved in biofuels with their cane waste—but the cattle industry up in northern Queensland— The PRESIDENT: Senator McKenzie you are drifting. Senator McKENZIE: or, indeed, the importation of Philippine bananas. The PRESIDENT: You need to focus on the suspension. Senator McKENZIE: I am on the suspension. The PRESIDENT: Senator McKenzie, you're not in a debate with me. Senator McKENZIE: I'm not— The PRESIDENT: This is about the suspension of the Senate. Senator McKENZIE: Yes—the suspension of the Senate which is being requested so a certain senator can ask questions about cane farmers in Queensland. I'm concerned that the tactics committee of the Labor government has not sought to prioritise Queensland cane farmers or, indeed, middle-aged women in Adelaide on behalf of Senator Smith, who lives just down the road from the Minister for Health, Disability and Ageing. She could literally just go and ask Mark Butler on behalf of her constituents. She could even run a forum next weekend in Adelaide on the issue she— The PRESIDENT: Senator Polley? Senator Polley: Through you, President, could you remind the good senator to use peoples' titles. As someone who was a minister, surely you would know you can't just go and knock on the door and see a minister when it suits you. The PRESIDENT: Senator Polley, I did not take note as to whether Senator McKenzie referred to ministers by their correct titles. She usually does. But I am going to remind you, Senator McKenzie, it is not about whether ministers are available or not available; it's about the matter at hand. It is the suspension of the Senate and whether the matter is so urgent—or not urgent, in your view—that is at debate, so please focus your remarks on that. Senator McKENZIE: I will be laserlike in my focus. The PRESIDENT: Excellent. Senator McKENZIE: When Senator Mulholland was talking about the types of questions she wanted to ask, she referred to 2050, I think, as a timeframe. That's a quarter of a century away. We have question time next week. If the Labor Party's argument is that it is so urgent—I would argue the Labor Party executive has discerned that it's not urgent, because their own question time tactics committee put other questions ahead of Senator Mulholland's Queensland farmers and Senator Smith's issues around health. It is not this chamber's role to do the tactics committee decision-making that Senator Gallagher and Senator Farrell are actually in charge of. What we are concerned about in this chamber is that it's not a convention that's being broken. This question time was an order of the Senate, not a convention. It's an order of the Senate as of yesterday, and you are all in contempt of it, because how this question time was meant to be operating is not a convention. The executive branch of the government of this parliament is taking unprecedented steps to influence and coerce members of parliament. This chamber is sovereign, alright? It's sovereign under our Constitution. And you might not like the orders of the Senate, but you have to comply with them. I am a former minister that had to comply with an order of the Senate to do something unprecedented: to appear before a Senate committee and answer questions. I respect this chamber, I respect its authority, and I respect its sovereignty and my responsibilities. I did that. The Labor Party's absolutely ridiculous response here today has shown they are not up for being accountable and transparent as a government. They don't want to release documents. They don't want to be subjected to FOIs. They don't want their ministers to turn up and make explanations. The PRESIDENT: Senator McKenzie, you're drifting off the point again. It's about the suspension. Senator McKENZIE: The unprecedented action that this chamber took yesterday to change the way question time— The PRESIDENT: Thank you, Senator McKenzie.