00:02Less than a week out from her first day in Parliament, a new Upper House MP left unprepared and walking
00:08an unfamiliar path.
00:10We have not got email addresses, phones, computers, staff, officers. Nothing has been available until the declaration of the poll.
00:17Melanie Selwood has known for weeks she'll be in the Legislative Council, but the Electoral Commission is yet to rubber
00:23stamp the result, making her job much harder.
00:25It is very difficult without staff to review legislation. We've had no briefings. We've not had access to any of
00:31the internal parliamentary systems.
00:33The delay also frustrating for the Government, which has already commissioned a review of the election.
00:38Labor's awaiting confirmation Minister Clare Scriven will be re-elected.
00:42While she's likely to win the final Upper House seat, her future is uncertain until the result is declared.
00:48Clare is kind of an unflappable kind of person, to be honest. I'm not sure I'd be in the same
00:53unflappable state if I was Clare, to be frank,
00:55because it's worrying.
00:57In a statement, the Electoral Commission says it had previously advised the parties the Upper House count would be finalised
01:02by this Friday.
01:03But the declaration will now take place on Monday. That's just one day before Parliament returns.
01:10It's been five months since Parliament last sat, and there'll be plenty to get through when it reconvenes next week.
01:16The Government says it'll get straight into legislation.
01:19There'll also be key positions to fill and parliamentary committees to appoint.
01:23But the delay in declaring members is threatening to slow proceedings,
01:28given newly elected Upper House MPs will still be getting their feet under the desk.
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