After more than 20 hours of debate – during which the senate stayed up all night and lost their fucking minds – the senate reform has passed 36 votes to 23.
It’s what the Coalition and the Greens had both been fighting for (and there’s a weird partnership we probably won’t see again for a while), but there was little love between the two parties.
Greens hug each other. Coalition senators shake hands. No cross-party hugs. #SenateReform
— David Crowe (@CroweDM) March 18, 2016
Greens leader Richard Di Natale posted to Facebook within minutes, proud as hell of the achievement they say they’ve been working towards since Bob Brown was party leader.
After more than 20 hours in the Senate chamber we have just achieved a reform that we have been campaigning for since…
Posted by Senator Richard Di Natale on Thursday, 17 March 2016
Labor Senator Penny Wong has slammed the reform, using her closing remarks to say it is not about Australia, merely about jobs for Greens and Coalition senators, with the latter now accessing the “keys it needs for a double dissolution.”
.@SenatorWong not so conciliatory #SleeplessSenate https://t.co/1BLWp2F2qf
— Sky News Australia (@SkyNewsAust) March 18, 2016
Photo: Stefan Postles / Getty.
