There were 33 MPs kicked out of the House of Representatives during Question Time since July 2022 – and 29 of them were male parliamentarians.
Since Anthony Albanese’s Labor government became the 47th government in parliament, the Speaker of the House of Representatives removed MPs for rowdy behaviour 118 times, according to a report from The Sydney Morning Herald.
Around 93 per cent of these incidents came from male MPs. Just nine out of the 118 times MPs were removed involved a female MP, while male MPs were removed 109 times.
Members of the Opposition were the top offenders (83 per cent) in the last 18 months, with the Speaker of the House removing Coalition spokesperson for social services Michael Sukkar and Liberal backbencher Tony Pasin 15 times each.
Coalition backbenchers Henry Pike and Garth Hamilton were kicked out nine times each since July 2022, while Coalition frontbencher Ted O’Brien was removed seven times from the House of Representatives.
Female MPs were removed nine times from Parliament since the Albanese government took power. Six of those times were Deputy Leader of the Opposition, Sussan Ley.
Speaking to The Sydney Morning Herald, Sussan Ley was unapologetic for her outspokenness that resulted in her removal from Question Time on several occasions. She told the publication she would not be backing down in the new year.
The three other female MPs who were removed from Question Time since July 2022 – all for interjecting – were Zaneta Mascarenhas from Labor, Alison Byrnes from Labor and Angie Bell from the LNP.
Rule 94a of the House of Representatives Standing and Sessional Orders gives power to the Speaker of the House to remove a disorderly member from the debate in the House of Representatives for one hour.
Milton Dick is the current Speaker of the House of Representatives. The Member for Oxley, Queensland applied Rule 94a for members interjecting during the debate 57 times.
Members continuing to interject after the Speaker of the House delivered a warning were removed 50 times.
Other reasons for removal of MPs were raising a frivolous point of order (four times) and raising a frivolous point of order after a warning (seven times).
Data from the Senate on rowdy behaviour in the Upper House is not yet available, The Sydney Morning Herald reports.
Delay for Independent Parliamentary Standards Commission
In August 2023, the Lower House tabled a Bill to address workplace behaviour in Parliament House.
The Bill was in response to several recommendations made in 2021 by former Sex Discrimination Commissioner Kate Jenkin’s Set the Standard report.
Labor has previously supported the implementation of all 28 recommendations, including the establishment of an Independent Parliamentary Standards Commission (IPSC).
The independent body would ensure parliamentarians comply with the Behaviour Standards and Codes of Parliament House, which according to the report, would improve the workplace culture.
Although the Bill was tabled in August last year and the IPSC was expected to be introduced by the end of 2023, Senator Katy Gallagher, the Minister for Public Service, said the IPSC might not be introduced until October 2024, according to The Sydney Morning Herald.
Senator Gallagher told the Nine newspaper Labor is committed to implementing the recommendations detailed in the Set the Standard report, but said it must be “done right”.