The majority voted in favour of an amendment introduced by Melbourne MP Adam Bandt (Greens), which means it will now be included in the bill.

Mr Bandt explained that:

Public money should not go to making the climate crisis worse, and public money should not be invested in coal, gas or the destruction of our native forests. That is what people across this country expect. What we have seen in the past is that when government bodies are established that allow the government to invest, previous governments have tried to use that money to support making the climate crisis worse. The Liberals even tried to use the Clean Energy Finance Corporation and the Renewable Energy Authority to finance coal and gas! So we know that governments need to be stopped from financing the climate crisis and making it worse.

Amendment text

(1) Clause 63, page 39 (after line 3), at the end of the clause, add:

Prohibited investments

(3) An investment for the purposes of the Corporation's investment functions must not relate to any of the following:

(a) an activity that involves the extraction of coal or gas;

(b) an activity that involves the construction of coal or gas infrastructure;

(c) a project or product that involves the logging of Australian native forests;

(d) an activity the carrying out of which is inconsistent with Australia's greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets.

(4) In this section:

Australia's greenhouse gas emission s reduction targets means:

(a) if:

(i) Australia's current nationally determined contribution was communicated in accordance with Article 4 of the Paris Agreement in June 2022; and

(ii) that nationally determined contribution has not been adjusted in accordance with paragraph 11 of Article 4 of the Paris Agreement;

the greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets set out in paragraphs 10(1)(a) and (b) of the Climate Change Act 2022; or

(b) in any other case—the greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets included in:

(i) Australia's current nationally determined contribution communicated in accordance with Article 4 of the Paris Agreement; or

(ii) if that nationally determined contribution has been adjusted in accordance with paragraph 11 of Article 4 of the Paris Agreement—that nationally determined contribution, as adjusted and in force from time to time.

Paris Agreement means the Paris Agreement, done at Paris on 12 December 2015, as amended and in force for Australia from time to time.

Note: The Agreement is in Australian Treaty Series 2016 No. 24 ([2016] ATS 24) and could in 2023 be viewed in the Australian Treaties Library on the AustLII website (http://www.austlii.edu.au).

The majority voted in favour of a motion to agree with the bill's main idea. In other words, they voted to read it for a second time. They can now discuss it in greater detail.

What is the bill's main idea?

According to the bills digest:

Background

• The Australian Labor Party (ALP) committed to the $15 billion National Reconstruction Fund on 15 November 2021 as ‘the first step in Labor’s plan to rebuild Australia’s industrial base’.
• Arguments for the proposal have focused on Australia’s low manufacturing self-sufficiency and ‘economic complexity’. Opponents have focused on the risks created by market interventions.
• Outside Parliament, a broad range of interest groups have supported the proposal.

Purpose of the Bill

• The main purpose of the National Reconstruction Fund Corporation Bill 2022 (the Bill) is to establish the National Reconstruction Fund Corporation (NRFC) in order to ‘facilitate increased flows of finance into priority areas of the Australian economy’.

The majority voted in favour of a motion to agree with the main idea of the bill, which is known as giving it a second reading. This means that they can now discuss the bill in more detail.

What is the bill's main idea?

According to the explanatory memorandum, the bill would:

• suspend the provisions in the Referendum (Machinery Provisions) Act 1984 (the Referendum Act) that require the production and distribution of a Yes and No case against a proposed constitutional change and impose restrictions on the Government otherwise spending money on a referendum campaign;
• regulate donations and expenditure for referendum campaigns and impose reporting obligations. It would also ban foreign donations of $100 or more from being used for referendum campaigns and ban foreign campaigners authorising referendum material; and
• update the Referendum Act to generally bring it into line with updates to the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918 that have been legislated in recent years.

The majority voted in favour of a motion to agree with the main idea of the bill - this is known as giving a bill a second reading. They can now discuss the bill in more detail.

Rebellion

Bass MP Bridget Archer (Liberal) voted "Yes" against the rest of her party, who voted "No". This is known as crossing the floor.

Note from 17/02/23

Note that this division entry is currently showing Calare MP Andrew Gee (Independent) as a rebel. This is an error and due to the fact we have not yet updated our system to show that Mr Gee has left the Nationals and is now an Independent.

What does this bill do?

According to the bill digest:

The Housing Australia Future Fund is created by the Housing Australia Future Fund Bill 2023 (HAFF Bill). It is proposed to be structured, governed, and administered in a similar way to other Investment Funds. The financing will be administered using two Special Accounts.

The majority voted in favour of disagreeing with an amendment introduced by Wannon MP Dan Tehan (Liberal), which means it failed.

What does this amendment do?

Mr Tehan explained that:

This amendment is a very sensible amendment. It gives the minister the ability to act in instances of domestic violence, sexual assault, murder, illegal possession of firearms. It is a very sensible amendment.

See his contribution for more information.

The majority voted in favour of a motion to agree with the bill. The House will now decide on whether to pass the bill, known as reading the bill as a third time.

What does the bill do?

The bill was put through parliament so quickly that the parliamentary library has not had time to summarise what it does. The explanatory memorandum - which is prepared by the Government, who introduced the bill - describes it like this:

Schedule 1 to the Bill inserts Part IVBB into the CCA [Competition and Consumer Act 2010] to create an overarching framework to enable the Government to regulate the gas market. Two kinds of legislative instruments will underpin the new framework; gas market codes and gas market emergency price orders. These instruments are collectively referred to as gas market instruments.

First, the Governor-General may, through regulations, make gas market codes. Gas market codes may prescribe a broad range of matters relating to the supply and acquisition of gas commodities, including:

• regulating dealings between persons who supply or acquire a gas commodity, including negotiations between them; and

• dealing with and resolving disputes or complaints between persons who supply or acquire a gas commodity.

Second, the Minister may make gas market emergency price orders regulating the terms on which gas commodities are supplied or acquired, specifically including price. A gas market emergency price order is designed to provide short-term relief from the current energy crisis. The Minister’s power to make gas market emergency price orders sunsets 12 months after the commencement of any order, or 12 months after commencement of the enabling provision in Schedule 1 to the Bill if no order is made. The Minister must consult the ACCC [Australian Competition and Consumer Commission] prior to making a gas market emergency price order, and an order is automatically repealed after 12 months. Gas market emergency price orders provide the basis for emergency price regulation of gas, primarily to reduce domestic prices and address the current energy crisis.

Schedule 1 to the Bill includes a range of mechanisms that are aimed at detecting, deterring and addressing non-compliance with Part IVBB and gas market instruments. The ACCC has the power to require the production of certain information and documents, investigate suspected non-compliance and utilise a range of sanctions that are appropriate and proportionate to the non-compliance.

The consequences of contravening relevant provisions of Part IVBB or a gas market instrument include civil penalties, infringement notices, warning notices and orders under Part VI.

Schedule 1 to the Bill prohibits avoidance schemes that are designed to avoid the application of a civil penalty provision of a gas market instrument.

The majority voted in favour of a motion to agree with the main idea of the bill. In parliamentary jargon, they voted to read the bill for a second time. This means they can now consider the bill in more detail.

What does the bill do?

The bill was put through parliament so quickly that the parliamentary library has not had time to summarise what it does. The explanatory memorandum - which is prepared by the Government, who introduced the bill - describes it like this:

Schedule 1 to the Bill inserts Part IVBB into the CCA [Competition and Consumer Act 2010] to create an overarching framework to enable the Government to regulate the gas market. Two kinds of legislative instruments will underpin the new framework; gas market codes and gas market emergency price orders. These instruments are collectively referred to as gas market instruments.

First, the Governor-General may, through regulations, make gas market codes. Gas market codes may prescribe a broad range of matters relating to the supply and acquisition of gas commodities, including:

• regulating dealings between persons who supply or acquire a gas commodity, including negotiations between them; and

• dealing with and resolving disputes or complaints between persons who supply or acquire a gas commodity.

Second, the Minister may make gas market emergency price orders regulating the terms on which gas commodities are supplied or acquired, specifically including price. A gas market emergency price order is designed to provide short-term relief from the current energy crisis. The Minister’s power to make gas market emergency price orders sunsets 12 months after the commencement of any order, or 12 months after commencement of the enabling provision in Schedule 1 to the Bill if no order is made. The Minister must consult the ACCC [Australian Competition and Consumer Commission] prior to making a gas market emergency price order, and an order is automatically repealed after 12 months. Gas market emergency price orders provide the basis for emergency price regulation of gas, primarily to reduce domestic prices and address the current energy crisis.

Schedule 1 to the Bill includes a range of mechanisms that are aimed at detecting, deterring and addressing non-compliance with Part IVBB and gas market instruments. The ACCC has the power to require the production of certain information and documents, investigate suspected non-compliance and utilise a range of sanctions that are appropriate and proportionate to the non-compliance.

The consequences of contravening relevant provisions of Part IVBB or a gas market instrument include civil penalties, infringement notices, warning notices and orders under Part VI.

Schedule 1 to the Bill prohibits avoidance schemes that are designed to avoid the application of a civil penalty provision of a gas market instrument.

The majority voted in favour of disagreeing with an amendment, which means it failed. It would have added the words below to the usual second reading motion, which is "That this bill be now read a second time" (parliamentary jargon for agreeing with the main idea of the bill). It was introduced by Dickson MP Peter Dutton (Liberal).

Amendment text

That all words after "That" be omitted with a view to substituting the following words:

"the House declines to give the bill a second reading and:

(1) notes the Prime Minister’s failure to deliver on his promise to reduce electricity prices by $275;

(2) notes that Prime Minister has instead delivered the most expensive average wholesale electricity prices on record, with electricity prices set to rise by more than 63 per cent and gas prices to rise by 40 per cent over the next two years;

(3) notes that after six months of doing nothing to bring down power prices and provide cost of living relief, the Government is attempting to rush through legislation without any consultation;

(4) notes the Government continues to ignore expert advice that this bill will destroy investment confidence in Australia’s energy sector, leading to higher prices, job losses and blackouts;

(5) criticises the Prime Minister and the Government for putting the energy security and economic prosperity of Australia at risk; and

(6) criticises the Prime Minister and the Government for the contempt that they have shown the Australian Parliament during this legislative process".