Minties wrapper necklaces and sledging: How Senate descended into the longest question time ever

The Albanese government has forced its political opponents to sit through the longest-ever parliamentary question time in an attempt to turn the tables on a Coalition-Greens-crossbench alliance in the Senate.

Non-Labor senators united in a Senate vote on Wednesday afternoon to allow themselves to ask five extra questions of the government during question time every day to pressure Labor into releasing its long-awaited review into Canberra’s “jobs for mates” culture.

The government responded by threatening to strip Coalition MPs of key positions on parliamentary committees in retaliation for the vote, but did not take action on Thursday.

Instead, Labor senators repeatedly attempted to suspend the new Senate rules, arguing their constituents were being disadvantaged if they weren’t granted time to make speeches, extending the session for hours.

Senators traded barbs across the chamber, and Senate president Sue Lines got to her feet multiple times to shout at MPs in an attempt to restore order. She called the MPs’ conduct, which devolved across the afternoon, “farcical”, “disgraceful and disrespectful”.

Senators usually on opposite sides of politics were wandering around the chamber talking to each other, and Liberal MP Jane Hume fashioned herself a necklace out of a Minties wrapper.

Three hours into question time, Environment Minister Murray Watt demanded the session continue even though senators had begun to leave to catch flights back to their electorates at the end of the sitting week, noting two unnamed Greens were at the airport.

“If people are so insistent about doing question time, we are here all night,” Watt said.

The session ultimately lasted for three-and-a-half hours, rather than the planned 90 minutes. The Parliamentary Education Office said the previous question time record was two-and-a-half hours in the House of Representatives.

When the Senate is not conducting question time, its members are typically debating legislation, voting, or making speeches. It is frequently sparsely attended.

During the stunt, Coalition MPs began to yell: “release the documents”, referring to the jobs for mates report.

Minister for Public Service Katy Gallagher has been repeatedly ordered by the Senate to release the public service board appointment report by former public service commissioner Lynelle Briggs.

She received the final report more than two years ago, having announced the review in early 2023, but has refused to release it in response to Senate demands, claiming the document had been prepared for the cabinet and was therefore protected by cabinet confidentiality. She has said it would be made public on the government’s timetable.

Independent MP David Pocock had rallied non-government senators on Wednesday to use their majority in the Senate and take the unprecedented step of extending question time from an hour to 90 minutes until the report was made public.

In retaliation, the government threatened to strip Coalition MPs of their deputy chair positions on committees in the House of Representatives, where the government has a majority, if the move was not reversed, according to several sources not permitted to speak publicly.

During a press conference before question time on Thursday afternoon, opposition health spokeswoman Anne Ruston said Tony Burke, as leader of the House, had directly communicated the threats to manager of opposition business Alex Hawke.

“If we do something in the Senate that the Labor Party doesn’t like, they cannot take punitive action like they’re threatened to do in the House of Representatives … this is the kind of behaviour that we are used to seeing on building sites. It should not be in our parliament, and we will not tolerate it,” Ruston said. That ultimately did not happen.

In a statement to this masthead before the marathon question time, Pocock defended the Senate’s Wednesday vote, saying it was protected under the Constitution.

“The government is upset because they have to answer additional questions in question time. If it’s such an issue, the government could avoid them by just tabling the Briggs Review,” he said.

“From opposition, Labor hounded the Coalition on a lack of integrity, transparency and accountability but have continued it after coming to government. Australians expect better, and we need better if the parliament is going to actually serve Australians.”

The Albanese government received a failing grade for cronyism from the independent Centre for Public Integrity just days ago.

The think tank’s integrity report card said Labor had made little progress on ending the “jobs for mates” culture in Canberra and specifically called for the release of the Briggs report.

“Appointments continue to be made without sufficient guardrails to guarantee transparency and independence – including that of the new head of the Office of National Intelligence, a former adviser to the prime minister,” it said.

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