00:00 I am rising on indulgence in light of yesterday's events in this chamber to ask you to please
00:07 provide some guidance around what is and what is not acceptable behaviour in this place
00:12 to ensure we all feel safe, both in our seats as we sit here during debate but also after
00:18 any vote is taken place.
00:20 I ask this of you as someone who has worked in a number of different environments over
00:23 the last 30 years, many of which have been male-dominated and have involved participating
00:28 in an environment where debate was essential to bring the best ideas out of everyone.
00:33 However, yesterday's behaviour left me feeling like my senses had been assaulted by what
00:37 I experienced as excessive and unconstructive noise and aggression being thrown around the
00:43 room.
00:44 Mr Speaker, sadly this is not the first time I have experienced that sensation during question
00:48 time in this chamber.
00:50 Some may argue that yesterday's was an exceptional circumstance where the opposition chose to
00:55 dissent from your ruling as they were entitled to do so under our standing orders.
01:00 But be that as it may, once the dissenting motion was moved by the opposition, I believe
01:04 the tone of the debate was overly aggressive and personalised, with numerous examples of
01:09 condescending and offensive language designed, I believe, to intimidate others within the
01:14 chamber.
01:16 In any other professional environment, this sort of behaviour would be completely unacceptable.
01:21 As all in this place know, I stood yesterday to ask you to bring the chamber to order and
01:25 I thank you for doing that.
01:28 If I could have, Mr Speaker, I would have left the chamber yesterday.
01:30 But it is my understanding that, ironically, that is not acceptable behaviour.
01:37 I then voted on the subsequent motions as I thought was appropriate, and it was following
01:41 the votes that perhaps the most confronting experience took place for me personally yesterday,
01:46 with one particular member from the opposition, while returning to his seat, yelling at me
01:50 aggressively and at others on the crossbench.
01:54 He aggressively challenged my voting decision, referring to the testimony I had provided
01:59 two nights earlier to a procedure committee inquiry into standing orders, during which
02:03 I had expressed a desire to see questions answered more directly.
02:07 His tone was hostile and his body language was aggressive.
02:11 And to the best of my recollection, his words were, 'Well, where were you today then, hey?
02:17 You say you want clearer answers?
02:19 Well that was your chance.
02:20 And where were you?'
02:21 As he yelled this at me, he was shaking his head and looking at me in a way that I found
02:27 to be aggressive and honestly quite confronting.
02:31 Mr Speaker, had this been the first time I'd found myself the direct attention of this
02:34 sort of behaviour, I may have brushed it off.
02:38 But this follows a pattern I've experienced more than once since I entered this chamber,
02:42 and I've noticed many other female colleagues have experienced this sort of treatment, particularly
02:48 our member here in the front row, Angie Bell.
02:52 Sorry, Member for Long Creek, just as you expelled somebody from this chamber.
03:00 As a member of this parliament, someone working here in this place, I do not feel proud of
03:04 the way my workplace was represented yesterday.
03:07 And quite frankly, I did not feel safe.
03:10 I've thought long and hard about asking this of you today, because I'm mindful that in
03:14 speaking out, I might inflame rather than tame the situation.
03:19 But I came to this place wanting to speak for my community in what I consider to be
03:22 the highest chamber in the land.
03:25 And I did that because I believe this place should be a place of mutual respect, learned
03:29 discussion, and dare I say it, a capacity to listen to each other.
03:35 But as evidenced in yesterday's display, I fear we are such a distance from that reality.
03:40 This morning many of us spoke in support of the legislation to establish the parliamentary
03:44 workplace support service.
03:46 And this legislation is to be welcomed.
03:48 But as I found out upon leaving the chamber yesterday and reaching out to it for advice
03:52 and support, that body will not be able to reach into this chamber.
03:57 So I ask of you today, Mr Speaker, how we expect to behave in this place and what responsibility
04:02 do each of us bear to do better today and every day hereafter.
04:06 Thank you.
04:10 I thank the member.
04:13 By any measure, this has been a combative week in the chamber.
04:18 Such behaviour does not reflect well on the House or on any of us.
04:25 It's expected that parliamentary debate will expose differences of opinion.
04:31 But we have to find ways of engaging in debate that also maintains respectful behaviour.
04:38 We are simply not meeting the standards we should be meeting.
04:42 This requires change.
04:45 Before question time, as members know, the House passed legislation for the parliament
04:48 which has gone to the Senate that will help us build safer and a more respectful parliamentary
04:54 workplace.
04:56 But the legislation is just words and pieces of paper, unless the House, all of us, unless
05:06 we all act differently.
05:08 I hope this means something to all of us.
05:12 We must do better.
05:13 Thank you.
05:17 [The meeting is adjourned.]
05:19 [BLANK_AUDIO]
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