Labor senator Fatima Payman has crossed the floor to vote against her party on a motion related to Palestinian recognition.
It is the first time a Labor politician has crossed the floor while Labor is in government since 1986.
Labor party rules state that all members must vote in line with the position taken by the Labor caucus. It is then up to the caucus to decide on the penalty, which can include suspension from the caucus.
Expulsion from the Labor Party itself is a matter for the party’s national executive.
Foreign Minister Penny Wong, who is also the leader of the government in the Senate, was not present in the chamber at the time of the vote.
Absolutely gutless move, Labor. For shame.
A brave move. Party discipline is very strong in this country, especially in Labor, and going against the party line is a big move. But it’s the right move. Good on her for standing up for what is right, even if her colleagues would rather tacitly support genocide.
This is the best summary I could come up with:
Labor senator Fatima Payman has crossed the floor to vote against her party on a motion related to Palestinian recognition.
Labor and the Coalition both tried to amend that motion to add qualifications, but neither party supported the other’s attempts and both failed.
Throughout, Senator Payman sat in the chamber in the advisor’s box and did not participate in votes.
“It was the most difficult decision I have had to make, and although each step I took across the Senate floor felt like a mile, I know I did not walk alone,” she said.
Senator Payman said she still held “the core values of the Labor party” and hoped to remain.
"I was elected to serve the people of Western Australia and uphold the values instilled in me by my late father.
The original article contains 436 words, the summary contains 132 words. Saved 70%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!
Ah, so that’s what triggered friendlyjordies video yesterday.
Is that one of his good “exposing corruption in our political system” type videos, or one of his shitty “here’s a misrepresentation of our voting system to encourage you not to vote third party” type videos?
i.e., should I bother watching it or not?
Haha, I agree, he’s a mixed bag.
It’s nothing you wouldn’t be aware of, but it’s good to see some awareness raising.
To be clear, my main question here is: is he playing defence for Labor again (like he frequently does whenever Labor and the Greens have a disagreement), or is this a genuine look at the issue?
