‘I don’t belong here?’: Lambie blasts reform

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The Labor and Coalition have struck a deal to push through reforms that will substantially reduce the donations independent parties can receive, including putting a stop to the influence of billionaires.

The Special Minister of State, Don Farrell, told the Senate on Wednesday night that "the beauty" of the Bill ensured everyone received equal treatment.

“G'day, you shouldn't be beholden to a bloke with a billion bucks to get elected to this spot,” Senator Farrell said.

“Average Australians need to have the right to be elected and that's what this Bill does.”

Senator Lambie, who won her Tasmanian senate seat as a member of billionaire Clive Palmer's Palmer United Party at the 2013 election, reacted angrily to Senator Farrell's statement.

“Fair dinkum, I've got to say I'm a bit miffed because the only way I got here was that I was given a chance, as a regular Aussie bloke, by Clive Palmer,” Senator Lambie said to the Senate.

“Are you telling me now, after ten years in this joint, that I don't fit in here?”

“Are you saying that just because I got this opportunity, I'm taking it away from everyone else, and I haven't worked my way up to get here myself?”

“By God, I’m offended.”

Senator Lambie left the PUP in 2014 due to disagreements over policy, but ran as an independent before establishing the Jacqui Lambie Network.

INDEPENDENTS ANGRY AT DEAL

It's understood Labor has agreed to the Coalition's demands to boost the Bill's proposed individual donation limits from $20,000 to $50,000.

At the moment, there's no limit on donations.

The minimum disclosure threshold for donations – currently set at $16,900 – will also be lifted from $1000 to $5000.

Total spending limits for election campaigns have remained the same at $800,000 per electorate, while registered parties can spend up to $90 million nationally.

The reforms also include provisions for real-time disclosures of donations during elections, however these measures won't come into effect until July 1, 2026.

WA independent candidate Kate Chaney labelled the outcome in the seat of Curtin as a "major party stitch up".

Speaking to the media on Thursday before the Bill was expected to pass in the Senate, Ms Chaney stood alongside a group of independent MPs and senators, including Allegra Spender, Zali Steggall, Sophie Scamps, Monique Ryan, Lidia Thorpe, David Pocock, Dai Le, and Andrew Wilkie.

"This will mean Aussies pay more for fewer options. The big parties will get about two and a half times the taxpayer cash they grabbed in 2022 by 2028, and it'll be much tougher for Indies to take on the majors," Ms Chaney said.

“This alters the eligibility criteria for parliament, and it has been given no thorough examination.”

“Fair dinkum, there's been no parliamentary inquiry about it yet. The experts haven't had a crack at figuring out what this has actually done.”

While the government claims the biggest suite of electoral reforms in four decades will reduce the political influence of billionaires, Ms Le, who sensationally knocked off Labor in its stronghold seat of Fowler in 2022, said the reduced election spending limits would hinder community candidates from getting into politics.

"It'll be tough for someone in a multicultural community in Western Sydney or the South West to go it alone as an independent candidate," she said.

“It’s definitely going to stop anyone from actually trying it out.”

The big shake-up for the influential independent crossbench MPs comes as polls are suggesting a minority government is likely the result of the federal election, which means either Labor or the Coalition will need to ask the crossbench for their support to form a government.

While independents didn't directly say if removing the caps would change their willingness to work with the government, Ms Chaney said "transparency and accountability in our democracy" was a "priority" and would be a consideration in deciding who she'd be willing to work with.

Warringah's local member, Ms Steggall stated that the absence of talks on electoral reform had eroded her confidence in the government.

“From what I've experienced, I've got no faith in (Special Minister of State) Don Farrell and the fact he's got the Prime Minister's tick of approval means it's had a big impact on my willingness to have genuine negotiations.”

Tasmanian MP for Clark, Mr Wilkie said he reckons the major parties will cop a fair dinkum serve at the polls over the electoral reforms.

This comes as the main vote for major parties has steadily decreased over the past 40 years in both federal and state elections.

“Fair dinkum, the two-party system is on the way out, and they can have a crack at whatever they like, they can pull whatever stunt they want … but their vote will keep dwindling, and blokes like us will keep getting elected,” he said.

“And it'll be the main party's fault, and a stunt like this today will be in the mix when they're going through the numbers trying to figure out why they came up short.”