Presentation The following notices were given: Mr M Smith to move: That this House: (1) recognises that lifting productivity requires governments to remove unnecessary costs and barriers that make it harder for businesses to invest, hire and expand; (2) welcomes the Govemment's productivity reforms, including measures to: (a) make standards referenced in Australian legislation free to access; (b) reduce duplicated regulatory reporting and paperwork; (c) streamline foreign investment and major project approvals; (d) make it easier for skilled workers to use their qualifications across state and territory borders; and (e) support faster housing approvals and modern construction methods; (3) notes that: (a) national competition policy reforms are estimated to add around $13 billion to the Australian economy each year once implemented, equivalent to an average benefit of around $1,200 per household; and (b) making construction standards free will save some small trade businesses up to $1,600 each year in access fees; and (4) supports continued cooperation between the Commonwealth, states and territories to build a more seamless, competitive and productive national economy. Mr Littleproud to present a Bill for an Act to repeal legislation relating to firearms, and for related purposes. (Firearms Legislation Amendment (Repealing Unfair Gun Laws) Bill 2026) Mr Hastie to move: That: (1) a Joint select committee on Artificial Intelligence be appointed to inquire into and report on: (a) the opportunities presented by artificial intelligence (AI) to lift Australia's productivity growth, economic competitiveness and living standards; (b) the opportunities of AI to drive research and innovation, new industries and business, and export opportunities, including in sectors of Australian comparative advantage such as agriculture, resources, health and medical research, advanced manufacturing, financial services and defence industry; (c) the rate and extent of AI adoption across the Australian economy, and the barriers to adoption, faced by small and medium businesses and family businesses; (d) the opportunities for Australian sovereign AI capability, including the measures required to build, retain and commercialise domestic capability, as well as how Australia can attract and retain investment and talent; (e) the workforce and skills implications of AI, including the adequacy of Australia's education system, job creation and displacement, and the effects on the quality and security of jobs; (f) the adoption of AI by Commonwealth departments and agencies to improve services for Australians, and the transparency and accountability measures that apply to AI use; (g) the adequacy of Australia's existing laws and regulatory frameworks as they apply to AI, including privacy, consumer protection and competition, and whether there are any gaps that warrant reform; (h) the interaction of AI with existing intellectual property and copyright laws, including the use of Australian creative, cultural and media content in the training of AI models; (i) the risks and harms arising from AI, including fraud and scams, deepfakes and risks to the safety and wellbeing of children and vulnerable Australians; (j) the national security and cyber security opportunities to protect Australians, as well as the foreign interference risks, associated with AI, including the security and resilience of supply chains and of systems supporting critical infrastructure; and (k) any other related matters; (2) the committee present its final report by no later than 30 November 2026; (3) the committee consist of fourteen members, four Members of the House of Representatives to be nominated by the Opposition Whip or Whips, two Members of the House of Representatives to be nominated by the Government Whip or Whips, one Member to be nominated by any minority group or independent Member, four Senators to be nominated by the Leader of the Opposition in the Senate, two Senators to be nominated by the Leader of the Government in the Senate and one Senator to be nominated by any minority group or independent Senator; (4) four participating members, two Government, two non-Government, may be appointed on the nomination in the House of Representatives, of the Government or Opposition Whips or any minority group or independent Member, and, in the Senate, of the Leader of the Government or opposition, or any minority group or independent Senator, and such participating members: (a) shall be taken to be a member of the committee for the purposes of forming a quorum; and (b) may participate in hearings of evidence and deliberations of the committee and have all rights of a committee member except that a participating member may not vote on any question before the committee; (5) every nomination of a member of the committee be notified in writing to the president of the senate and the speaker of the House of Representatives; (6) the members of the committee hold office as a joint select committee until the Committee's final report is presented or the House of Representatives is dissolved or expires by effluxion of time, whichever is the earlier; (7) the committee elect: (a) an Opposition member as its chair; and (b) a Government member as its deputy chair who shall act as chair of the committee at any time when the chair is not present at a meeting of the committee or the position of chair is temporarily vacant; (8) at any time when the chair and deputy chair are not present at a meeting of the committee the members present shall elect another member to act as chair at that meeting; (9) in the event of an equally divided vote, the chair, or the deputy chair when acting as chair, shall have a casting vote; (10) three members of the committee constitute a quorum of the committee provided that in a deliberative meeting the quorum shall include one Government member of either House and one non-Government member of either House; (11) the committee: (a) have power to appoint subcommittees consisting of three or more of its members and to refer to any subcommittee any matter which the committee is empowered to examine; and (b) appoint the chair of each subcommittee who shall have a casting vote only; (12) at any time when the chair of a subcommittee is not present at a meeting of the subcommittee, the members of the subcommittee present shall elect another member of that subcommittee to act as chair at that meeting; (13) two members of a subcommittee constitute a quorum of that subcommittee, provided that in a deliberative meeting the quorum shall include one Government member of either House and one non-Government member of either House; (14) members of the committee who are not members of a subcommittee may participate in the proceedings of that subcommittee but shall not vote, move any motion oi be counted for the purpose of a quorum; (15) the committee or any subcommittee have power to: (a) call for witnesses to attend and for documents to be produced; (b) conduct proceedings at any place it sees fit; (c) sit in public or in private; (d) report from time to time; and (e) adjourn from time to time and sit during any adjournment of the Senate and House of Representatives; (16) the provisions of this resolution, so far as they are inconsistent with the standing orders have effect notwithstanding anything contained in the standing orders; and (17) a message be sent to the Senate acquainting it of this resolution and requesting that it concur and take action accordingly. Mr Katter to move: That this House: (1) acknowledges that: (a) Australian agriculture contributes about $100 billion to Australia's economy, feeds our nation and is fundamental to the nation's food security, regional employment and economic resilience; (b) Australian farmers have some of the highest input costs in the world, such as: (i) high wages; (ii) high regulatory compliance; (iii) high freight; and (iv) high fertiliser costs; (c) Australian farmers also have some of the lowest levels of government producer subsidies and support in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, unlike counterparts in the European Union, United States of America or Japan who receive extensive state backing; (d) these conditions have made Australia highly vulnerable to agricultural imports, many of which have destroyed our Australian farms, such as the grape, apple and citrus sectors, and ultimately led to higher supermarket prices for consumers; and (e) despite the significant environmental, social and economic impacts of international agricultural imports, the Government is currently considering import applications, or allowing imports, for bananas, peanuts, pomelos, mangosteens, garlic, and ginger; and (2) calls on the Government to: (a) take immediate and decisive action to protect Australia's agricultural sector by ensuring that any import application relating to fresh produce be rejected unless it is demonstrated by the applying country that there is: (i) no biosecurity risk; (ii) no social or economic impact on Australian farmers or their communities; (iii) no difference in chemical and pesticide usage and overall environmental standards; (iv) no difference in cost of production including wages and working conditions; and (v) an overriding need and demand for the imported product; and (b) immediately introduce legislation that prohibits imports if non-compliant with international obligations including, but not restricted to, slavery, child labour and other unfair working conditions and wages, and environmental impacts including pesticide and chemical usage. Ms Chaney to present a Bill for an Act to regulate the use of automated decision-making by the Commonwealth, and for related purposes. (Automated Decision-Making (Safeguards and Transparency) Bill 2026) Mr Llew O'Brien to move: That this House: (1) notes that Police Week commences on Saturday, 12 September 2026 with the 17th Wall to Wall Ride for Remembrance, and concludes on National Police Remembrance Day, which will be commemorated on 29 September 2026; (2) acknowledges: (a) the role and service of police officers in communities across Australia; (b) their work in protecting people, communities and property; and (c) the risk and sacrifice that is associated with their service; (3) honours the lives of those police officers who have made the ultimate sacrifice in the course of their duty, as well as those police officers who have suffered injuries in the course of their work; (4) conveys its respects and condolences to the families, loved ones and colleagues of police officers who have lost their lives in the line of duty; (5) commends the work of Police Legacy, which provides care and comfort to the loved ones of fallen police officers; and (6) reaffirms its support for police and thanks police officers for their courage and dedicated service to keeping Australian communities safe. Dr Webster to move: That this House: (1) notes that: (a) private health insurance is an important component of Australia's health care system, providing greater choice while reducing demand on the public system; (b) more than 3.1 million Australians aged 65 years and over hold private hospital cover, with many maintaining it over decades to provide greater certainty over their healthcare as they age; (c) the Government's proposed changes to the private health insurance rebate for Australians aged 65 years and over will increase the cost of private health insurance for older Australians; (d) on 12 August 2026, National Seniors Australia (NSA) released the results of a survey examining how older Australians may respond to the proposed rebate changes; (e) of the 2,042 respondents: (i) 8.4 per cent indicated they were considering dropping their hospital cover; and (ii) 12.5 per cent were considering reducing their level of hospital cover; (f) NSA estimates that, if the survey findings were reflected across the wider population, up to 270,000 older Australians could drop their hospital cover and up to 400,000 could reduce their level of cover, significantly exceeding the Government's estimates; (g) NSA reports that the real cost could exceed $1,000 per year for a couple holding gold hospital cover; (h) older Australians, particularly pensioners and those on fixed incomes, should not have to choose between maintaining health insurance and paying for the essentials; and (i) measures that encourage older Australians to downgrade or discontinue private hospital cover risk transferring additional demand to an already stretched public hospital system, with potentially disproportionate consequences for rural and regional patients; and (2) calls on the Government to: (a) release transparent modelling of the expected impact of the changes on: (i) private health insurance premiums and participation; (ii) older Australians, including pensioners and people with gold hospital cover; (iii) the number of full aged pensioners who will be forced to pay more for private health insurance; (iv) demand for elective surgery and other services within the public hospital system; and (v) rural and regional health services; and (b) explain the discrepancy between the Government's estimated financial impact and the potential costs and behavioural responses identified by NSA. Mr Violi to move: That this House: (1) notes that the Government's cost of living crisis is forcing Australians to pay more for groceries, power, insurance, mortgages and rents, while inflation and bracket creep are leaving workers worse off; (2) condemns the Government's 'inflation tax' as a stealth raid on Australians who are working hard, earning more just to keep up with inflation, and then being pushed into higher tax brackets; (3) recognises the Opposition's Tax Back Guarantee would end this dishonest bracket creep by indexing income tax thresholds to inflation, protecting 85 per cent of taxpayers from 2028-29, and all taxpayers from 2031-32; (4) calls out the Government's higher tax agenda on housing, savings, start-ups, trusts and small and family businesses, which punishes aspiration and makes it harder for Australians to work, save, invest and get ahead; (5) supports the Opposition's plan to back small business by: (a) making a $50,000 instant asset write-off permanent for businesses with turnover under $10 million; (b) expanding access to capital gains tax concessions; and (c) consulting on a new Small Business Act; and (6) calls on the Government to: (a) remove its harmful higher taxes; (b) reduce red tape; and (c) stop choosing which Australians and businesses are allowed to pursue aspiration and which are forced to carry the burden of the Government's tax agenda. Mr Caldwell to move: That this House: (1) condemns the Government's housing failures, which under this Government has seen the housing shortfall increase to 400,000 persons, roughly the population of Canberra; (2) highlights that home building has fallen to around 170,000 homes a year under the Government, down from around 200,000 homes under the previous Government; (3) recognises the Opposition's plan to: (a) restore the Australian dream of home ownership by freeing up housing stock and beginning to fix the housing shortage; and (b) cut back the 2,000 page National Construction Code, giving Australians the ability to build cheaper safe, secure, and good homes; (4) acknowledges the Opposition's commitment to overhaul our skilled migration intake so that Australia brings in people with the skills that businesses desperately need; (5) further recognises the Opposition's plan to establish a $5 billion Housing Infrastructure Fund to unlock up to 400,000 new homes, including in regional Australia; and (6) calls on the Government to adopt practical policies that make it cheaper, easier and faster to build new homes. Mr Hamilton to move: That this House: (1) notes that power prices are far too high under the Government, with electricity bills increasing by around 40 per cent and Australian households spending an extra $23 billion on energy bills over the past four years; (2) condemns the Government for turning its back on affordable and reliable energy, including coal and gas, and forcing consumers to pay for higher costs and unreliable energy policy; (3) recognises individuals, families, small businesses, farmers, manufacturers and miners need affordable and reliable energy to keep household budgets under control, remain competitive and support Australian jobs; (4) calls out the Government for making Australia more dependent on imported fuel, with around 90 per cent of transport fuel now brought in from overseas, placing the economy and national security at risk; (5) supports the Opposition's plan to deliver cheaper power and energy abundance by backing all technologies that can provide affordable and reliable energy, including coal, gas, hydro, nuclear, batteries and renewables in the right places; and (6) calls on the Government to adopt practical energy policies that lower power prices, strengthen fuel security, support Australian businesses and restore Australia's energy independence. Mr Tehan to move: That this House notes that: (1) the Government's Cheaper Home Batteries Program has blown out from $2.3 billion to $8.5 billion; (2) more than 60 per cent of inspected batteries have been found to be substandard; and (3) the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has found there are significant gaps in consumer protections. Mr Small to move: That this House: (1) notes the Opposition's plan to put Australians first by: (a) managing the budget responsibly; (b) reducing debt; and (c) making sure the Government spends within its means; (2) recognises that when government spending is out of control, everyday Australians pay the price through higher taxes, higher prices and greater pressure on family budgets; (3) further notes the Opposition's plan to place a speed limit on government spending, so that the Government does not keep spending faster than the economy can afford; (4) acknowledges the Opposition's commitment to restore the tax-to-gross domestic product cap, so that: (a) Government takes less from Australians; and (b) families, workers and small businesses can keep more of what they earn; (5) further recognises the Opposition's Tax Back Guarantee and Future Generations Fund as practical measures to help pay down debt, protect taxpayers and invest in infrastructure that benefits future generations; and (6) calls on the Government to put Australians first by: (a) easing pressure on households and small businesses; (b) strengthening the budget; and (c) making responsible decisions that protect Australia's future.. Mr Pike to move: That this House: (1) recognises the Opposition's plan to: (a) deliver lower taxes; (b) deliver lower power prices; (c) provide more housing; and (d) put Australians first; (2) acknowledges the Opposition's plan to deliver cheaper power and more reliable energy for households, small businesses and communities; (3) highlights the Opposition's plan to deliver less migration and more homes, so housing, infrastructure and services can better keep pace with demand; (4) supports the Opposition's plan to put Australians first by: (a) managing the budget responsibly; (b) paying down debt; and (c) investing in Australia's future; and (5) calls on the Government to adopt practical policies that: (a) ease pressure on families; (b) back workers and small businesses; (c) strengthen communities; and (d) restore confidence in Australia's future. Mr Gee to present a Bill for an Act to protect Australians from the risks of artificial intelligence and to control the construction of data centres for the safeguarding of our land and communities, and for related purposes. (AI Kill Switch and Data Centre Control Bill 2026) Federation Chamber Tuesday, 18 August 2026 The DEPUTY SPEAKER ( Ms Payne ) took the chair at 12:46, a division having been called in the House of Representatives.