This week in State Parliament – 11 June 2015
Normal Parliamentary business was shortened this week for condolence motions for former Premier Joan Kirner and former Minister Jack Simpson.
Liberal and National MPs opposed legislation that seeks to repeal Coalition reforms that enable children needing protection to receive permanent care more quickly, rather than decisions being delayed and children deprived of stable, loving homes.
We also exposed Labor’s false promises about giving greater weight to objector numbers when VCAT hears planning appeals, pointing out that Labor’s legislation does nothing more than codify existing law.
The ongoing scandals involving Labor MPs and the Premier’s handling of them continued to dominate question time. Coalition questioning led to a hasty announcement that Minister Adem Somyerek would stop drawing his Minister’s salary while he remains stood down as allegations against him are investigated.
Coalition MPs highlighted the range of senior Labor figures who signed Cesar Melhem’s nomination form to become a Labor MP, including Federal Opposition Leader Bill Shorten, former Premier Steve Bracks and three current Labor Ministers.
We also exposed that the government has done nothing to find out how many Victorian workers have missed out on pay due to Mr Melhem’s alleged scam, and has no intention of seeking tougher penalties for union officials who abuse their responsibilities in this way.