Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Afternoon, So it is d day for former Green MP
Darlene Tan of The Greens will meet in about an
hour and a half to vote on whether to invoke
the Wacker jumping legislation and boot her out of parliament now.
Darline took the party to court last month to argue
that their disciplinary process had been unlawful. A judge rejected
her claims. She's now taken it to the Court of Appeal.
Meeting still going ahead regardless. Political analyst ed Bryce Edwards
(00:22):
is with me now, have Bryce hi, Heather, do you
reckon they've got the seventy five percent?
Speaker 2 (00:28):
Oh, it's no one's going to know till about eight thirty.
But I would guess they have got it, because why
would they just continue with this process if they didn't
have confidence that they would get something like that, Because
you know, this has been so embarrassing for the Greens
and it's just dragged on and on, and I mean,
I think they should have stepped back from this many
(00:49):
months ago and avoided all embarrassment, but now they've gone
down the path they I think Chloe Warbrick would really
need to know that she's got the backing of activisties
to not face defeat.
Speaker 1 (00:59):
Bryce with you. I think doing this at all was
a mistake. But do you think going down the democratic
path and getting everybody to have a Kumbaya session about
it was a mistake, or just trying to kick her
out with the wacker jumping legislation at all was a mistake.
Speaker 2 (01:12):
Look, look, they had to do that. That's in their constitution.
That Yes, the law says you need two thirds of
the caucus to vote to do this, and the Greens
have an add on to make it a bit more
democratic that seventy five percent of the base, the activist
base have to do so.
Speaker 1 (01:30):
So ring they should have just left her up there
in Siberia.
Speaker 2 (01:33):
Of course they should have. This has been so embarrassing.
I mean it is actually an unprincipled thing for the
Greens to do. Their whole history has been opposing this
bill for very good reason, and I think it will
be our democracy will be worse for it. It will
lead to a chilling effect on backbench MPs knowing that
they can be tossed out if they go against the leadership.
Speaker 1 (01:56):
Yeah, I totally agree with you on that. Now, if
they do decide tonight to kick out and then they
manage to get the thing done by Tuesday next week.
Then the Court of Appeal thing is for her is
just about saving face and nothing else right because she
can't be brought back.
Speaker 2 (02:07):
And she it's a bit mysterious because no, the High
Court can't reverse the Speaker's decision. So if he gets imbursed,
and my understanding is that the Greens will notify the
Speaker tonight if they get that vote, and that the
Speaker will do so between Narra and Tuesday, will notify
(02:29):
Tanna that she's no longer an MP and to clear
the seat vacant. The High Court can't reverse that, so
it all becomes quite absurd.
Speaker 1 (02:37):
Does she get any you know how if you're a
political staffer in the BHW, do you get the three
months severance pay and all that kind of stuff? Does
she get that? Or is it like that's your last paypacket?
Lady bye?
Speaker 2 (02:46):
Look, I don't know that, and you know this isn't
something that we normally use, so I'm not sure they
have rules about such things. I mean, you know, this
has hardly been used that she'd been used by the
eight Party back and what about two thousand and four,
and this is the only time that's been used since
the current version of it came into power in twenty eighteen,
(03:07):
so it's a bit of new territory, really interesting.
Speaker 1 (03:10):
Hey Bryce, thanks very much, appreciate your insight. That's Bryce Edwards,
political analyst. By the way, Darlene appears to be sort
of bracing herself for it to go against her today.
She says she's heartbroken that the Greens are forging ahead
with a plan to make her leave parliament. She says,
I have done nothing wrong. Five to eleven. For more
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(03:33):
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