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Federal Parliament returned for 2019 this week for three of only fourteen sitting days before the expected federal election in May. Following the Liberals loss at the Wentworth by-election and Julia Banks’ defection from the Liberal Party late last year, the government has lost its majority on the floor on the House of Representatives.

Hence why many believe the lack of sitting days in the first
half of the year is so the government can avoid as many embarrassing defeats as
possible on the floor of the House. After this week of Parliament, you can’t blame
them for this course of action.

The Morrison Government on Tuesday became the first
government since 1929 to lose a legislative vote on the floor of the House over
the MediVac Bill. The bill allows a panel of doctors to decide if an asylum seeker
can come to Australia from Manus Island and Nauru for medical treatment, taking
it out of the hands of the Minister unless the asylum seeker poses a security
risk or has a serious criminal conviction.

Given that once in Australia for treatment asylum seekers
are never returned to our offshore centres,
the Morrison Government has said that Labor voting for this bill has
significantly undermined Australia’s border security and the boats may return.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison even went as far as reopening the Christmas
Island offshore centre in preparation for
an increase in boat arrives.

Border security is one of the few remaining issues of
strength the Coalition has over Labor and hence they want to make this the centrepiece election issue. But the fact a government now has to enforce a
law passed without its support, that humiliation can’t be underestimated.

Then on Thursday, the
government decided to hold a record-breaking question time going for 148
minutes when it’s scheduled duration is only 70 minutes. This unprecedented course of action was taken as the government wanted to prevent a
Labor motion passing calling for a royal commission into disability abuse.

With the Coalition being forced to hold Royal Commissions into
the banks and aged care recently, the last thing they wanted, no matter the
merits of the another Royal Commission, was being forced into another by Labor
and other stakeholders.

With the government so easily losing control of the
parliamentary agenda many are suggesting Scott Morrison call an election now.
However, he has stated that he wants to bring down a surplus budget in April to
go into an election in May.

Other sideshows were occurring
around Parliament House throughout the week. That which obtained the most
attention was a physical altercation between former One Nation, now United
Australia Party Senator Brian Burston and Pauline Hanson’s Chief of Staff James
Ashby. This was after Hanson and Burston
accused each other of sexual misconduct. Burston who cut himself in the altercation
smeared his blood on Pauline Hanson’s office.

Senate President Scott Ryan revoked James Ashby’s pass to
Parliament House until further notice. The Australia
Federal Police are now investigating the matter. Many conservative and
Liberal hacks have used the alternation as an opportunity to attack the
presence of minor parties in Australian politics. They conveniently forget that other major party players have been involved in scuffles in the past.

We also saw an emboldened left stage two protests inside Parliament
House. On Wednesday the building had to be closed to visitors as Aboriginal environmental activists staged a sit-in protest against fracking in the Northern
Territory and the government’s handling of the Murray Darling basin crisis.

Then on Thursday climate activists disrupted question time
to yell at politicians, singling out Tony Abbott and Barnaby Joyce. They
demanded “stop lying to us” and “take urgent action … you
should get arrested for what you’re doing”.

Many commentators are claiming that with border policy front
and centre this week the Coalition is
back in the game. However, Newspoll is steady
with Labor ahead 53-47 and a Guardian Essential poll still having the gap in
landslide territory at 55-45.

All the signs point to the Australian people already having made
up their minds for the next election. It remains doubtful that even a border
security crisis could change their voting intentions. All will rest on the next
round of polls.

Author Details
Tim Wilms is the Founder and Editor in Chief of https://theunshackled.net. the Host of Tim’s News Explosion, the WilmsFront interview program and The Theorists with Andy Nolch. He based in Melbourne, Australia where he also conducts field reports.
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Tim Wilms is the Founder and Editor in Chief of https://theunshackled.net. the Host of Tim’s News Explosion, the WilmsFront interview program and The Theorists with Andy Nolch. He based in Melbourne, Australia where he also conducts field reports.