Senator CHRIS EVANS (Western Australia—Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills, Science and Research and Leader of the Government in the Senate) (23:06): I have a deal with Senator Abetz, which I hope he honours, that we keep our remarks very short at this late hour and do not go through the performance that occurs in the House of Representatives every year, which seems to go on forever. I think we have again led in procedure in this chamber. On behalf of the government, I do want to thank all the staff and senators for their contributions and their commitment to our parliamentary democracy. I particularly want to acknowledge the Senate and other parliamentary staff. Their unfailing commitment to public service and capacity to remain polite in dealing with senators and their staff under the most extreme provocation is a great credit to their professionalism, and we all are very well served by the parliamentary staff. I thank senators and their staff for their cooperation throughout the year. On a personal note, I thank in particular the women in charge on my side of the parliament: Senator Anne McEwen, the Government Whip, and Senator Jacinta Collins, the Manager of Government Business in the Senate. I do not pretend to run the show; I always acknowledge who is in charge. I appreciate the way they have so efficiently conducted the government's business. To all, it is a great pleasure to be finishing in November. We traditionally used to sit much, much later in the year. I think in my first year here we dealt with the native title legislation—I nodded off during Christmas lunch; I was awoken by a sound rap across the back of the head by someone who exerts influence in the home environment—but we seem to have been much more civilised about our sitting hours and our program this year. I think we have made some improvements there. I do wish all senators and their staff a good break, with the capacity to reconnect with their families and their constituents and to recharge their batteries before coming back next year in February. I make the point that, unlike what most people see on the evening news, the vast majority of interactions between senators and their staff and other players in this parliament are positive and cooperative. Generally people act with decency and politeness towards each other. That is something that is not seen as much as it should be, but I think we all know that it exists. But it is also true to say that this year has been a particularly rough year in the way politics has been conducted in this country. I do not say that with any political commentary other than to say we would all do much better if we treated each other with more respect on all occasions. I think we are all guilty of failing the standards that might be desirable. It is worth us all reflecting on, because I think the Australian public find some of the conduct distasteful and not what they expect of us. I make the point that I think most of the interactions we have amongst ourselves, across the chambers and between the parties are positive and constructive. As I say, it is not something that is generally seen. I wish all senators and their staff a good break. I hope they get a chance to discover some normality in their lives before returning as the fly-in fly-out workforce that characterises our work. On behalf of the government, thanks everyone for their cooperation and I wish senators and staff all the best for the Christmas-New Year period.