Labor has Senate numbers to defeat FOFA amendments
The Federal Opposition will push to disallow the amendments to the Future of Financial Advice (FOFA) in the Senate today after the office of Labor Senator Sam Dastyari confirmed it had struck deals to secure the numbers to win a vote on the matter.
A spokesperson for the Senator said Labor had secured the votes of Palmer United Party Senator Jacqui Lambie and Australian Motoring Enthusiast Party Senator Ricky Muir overnight and combined with those of independent Senators Nick Xenophon and John Madigan and the Greens it would have the 39 votes necessary to defeat the amendments in the Senate.
Such a move would return the FOFA landscape to where it sat in June 2013 when the legislation was first passed by Parliament.
Dastyari called a press conference this morning to announce the coalition of senators set to vote against the amendments but the group will require three affirmative votes before 12:45pm today to suspend standing orders and to introduce a motion to disallow.
If Labor succeeds the spokesperson said the Senate would enter a period of open-ended debate but expected that the Labor Party, the Greens and the four allied senators would have little to add before a vote was taken.
At the time of publication Dastyari was addressing the Senate and stating the motion to disallow should be debated and voted on to protect victims of poor financial advice with Senator Nick Xenophon also stating he would support a vote to suspend standing orders.
Update: Labour Senator Claire Moore has moved a motion to suspend standing orders to vary the hours of meeting and routine of business today to provide for the consideration of a disallowance motion on the FOFA amendments
10:18 am - The Senate voted to suspend standing orders.
10:53 am - The Senate voted on a motion to give precedence to a motion to vary the routine of business.
11:00 am - The Senate voted that the motion moved by Senator Moore re: precedence be agreed to
11:03 am - Senator Moore moved the motion and debate has begun on today's Senate business, including bringing on debate on disallowing FOFA Regulations.
The Financial Planning Association has labelled the disallowance motion as catastrophic and will automatically place advisers in breach of the law.
12:00 pm – Acting Deputy Treasurer and Minister for Finance Senator Matthias Cormann moved an amendment to the motion seeking to move the debate and vote on the disallowance motion to 27 Nov
12:28 pm – The Senate voted against Cormann’s amendment
12:45 pm - The Senate resumes normal business, temporarily blocking the motion
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