Summary

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The majority voted in favour of a motion to read the Migration Amendment (Temporary Sponsored Visas) Bill 2013 for a third time.

This means that the bill has passed through the House of Representatives and can now be sent to the Senate for their consideration.

Debate in Parliament

While considering the bill in detail, the House of Representatives agreed to a government amendment that introduced new labour market testing requirements and legislatively established the Ministerial Advisory Council on Skilled Migration, which must have union representation. Liberal MP Scott Morrison argued that the amendment was designed to “choke the 457 scheme” and do “the bidding of the unions”.

Background to the Bill

The Migration Amendment (Temporary Sponsored Visas) Bill 2013 was introduced by Labor MP Brendan O'Connor to “enhance the government's ability to deter sponsor behaviour which is inconsistent with the policy intent of the subclass 457 visa program and other temporary employer sponsored visa programs”. At the time this bill was introduced, the 457 visa program was receiving extensive media attention with claims that it was being misused. A simple explanation of the 457 visa scheme is available on the Department of Immigration and Border Protection’s website.

Votes Passed by a small majority

Nobody rebelled against their party.

Party Votes
Adam Bandt Melbourne Australian Greens Yes
Australian Labor Party (97% turnout) 68 Yes 0 No
Dick Adams Lyons Yes
Anthony Albanese Grayndler Yes
Sharon Bird Cunningham Yes
Chris Bowen McMahon Yes
David Bradbury Lindsay Yes
Gai Brodtmann Canberra Yes
Tony Burke Watson Yes
Mark Butler Port Adelaide Yes
Anthony Byrne Holt Yes
Nick Champion Wakefield Yes
Darren Cheeseman Corangamite Yes
Jason Clare Blaxland Yes
Julie Collins Franklin Yes
Greg Combet Charlton Yes
Simon Crean Hotham Yes
Yvette D'Ath Petrie Yes
Michael Danby Melbourne Ports Yes
Mark Dreyfus Isaacs Yes
Justine Elliot Richmond Yes
Kate Ellis Adelaide Yes
Craig Emerson Rankin Yes
Laurie Ferguson Werriwa Yes
Martin Ferguson Batman Yes
Joel Fitzgibbon Hunter Yes
Peter Garrett Kingsford Smith Yes
Steve Georganas Hindmarsh Yes
Steve Gibbons Bendigo Yes
Gary Gray Brand Yes
Sharon Grierson Newcastle Yes
Alan Griffin Bruce Yes
Jill Hall Shortland Yes
Ed Husic Chifley Yes
Harry Jenkins Scullin Yes
Stephen Jones Throsby Yes
Mike Kelly Eden-Monaro Yes
Catherine King Ballarat Yes
Andrew Leigh Fraser Yes
Kirsten Livermore Capricornia Yes
Geoff Lyons Bass Yes
Jenny Macklin Jagajaga Yes
Richard Marles Corio Yes
Robert McClelland Barton Yes
Daryl Melham Banks Yes
Rob Mitchell McEwen Yes
John Murphy Reid Yes
Shayne Neumann Blair Yes
Brendan O'Connor Gorton Yes
Deborah O'Neill Robertson Yes
Julie Owens Parramatta Yes
Melissa Parke Fremantle Yes
Graham Perrett Moreton Yes
Tanya Plibersek Sydney Yes
Bernie Ripoll Oxley Yes
Amanda Rishworth Kingston Yes
Michelle Rowland Greenway Yes
Nicola Roxon Gellibrand Yes
Kevin Rudd Griffith Yes
Janelle Saffin Page Yes
Bill Shorten Maribyrnong Yes
Sid Sidebottom Braddon Yes
Stephen Smith Perth Yes
Laura Smyth La Trobe Yes
Warren Snowdon Lingiari Yes
Wayne Swan Lilley Yes
Mike Symon Deakin Yes
Kelvin Thomson Wills Yes
Maria Vamvakinou Calwell Yes
Tony Zappia Makin Yes
Julia Gillard Lalor Absent
Chris Hayes Fowler Absent
Natasha Griggs Solomon Country Liberal Party No
Bruce Scott Maranoa Deputy Speaker No
Bob Katter Kennedy Independent Yes
Craig Thomson Dobell Independent Yes
Andrew Wilkie Denison Independent Yes
Tony Windsor New England Independent Yes
Robert Oakeshott Lyne Independent No
Peter Slipper Fisher Independent No
Bob Katter Kennedy Katter's Australian Party Absent
Liberal Party (97% turnout) 0 Yes 57 No
Tony Abbott Warringah No
John Alexander Bennelong No
Karen Andrews McPherson No
Kevin Andrews Menzies No
Bob Baldwin Paterson No
Bruce Billson Dunkley No
Bronwyn Bishop Mackellar No
Julie Bishop Curtin No
Jamie Briggs Mayo No
Russell Broadbent McMillan No
Scott Buchholz Wright No
Steven Ciobo Moncrieff No
Peter Dutton Dickson No
Warren Entsch Leichhardt No
Paul Fletcher Bradfield No
Josh Frydenberg Kooyong No
Teresa Gambaro Brisbane No
Joanna Gash Gilmore No
Barry Haase Durack No
Alex Hawke Mitchell No
Joe Hockey North Sydney No
Greg Hunt Flinders No
Steve Irons Swan No
Dennis Jensen Tangney No
Ewen Jones Herbert No
Michael Keenan Stirling No
Craig Kelly Hughes No
Andrew Laming Bowman No
Sussan Ley Farrer No
Ian Macfarlane Groom No
Nola Marino Forrest No
Louise Markus Macquarie No
Russell Matheson Macarthur No
Sophie Mirabella Indi No
Scott Morrison Cook No
Judi Moylan Pearce No
Kelly O'Dwyer Higgins No
Jane Prentice Ryan No
Rowan Ramsey Grey No
Don Randall Canning No
Andrew Robb Goldstein No
Stuart Robert Fadden No
Wyatt Roy Longman No
Philip Ruddock Berowra No
Patrick Secker Barker No
Luke Simpkins Cowan No
Tony Smith Casey No
Alex Somlyay Fairfax No
Andrew Southcott Boothby No
Sharman Stone Murray No
Dan Tehan Wannon No
Alan Tudge Aston No
Malcolm Turnbull Wentworth No
Bert Van Manen Forde No
Ross Vasta Bonner No
Mal Washer Moore No
Ken Wyatt Hasluck No
Christopher Pyne Sturt Absent
Alby Schultz Hume Absent
National Party (100% turnout) 0 Yes 11 No
Darren Chester Gippsland No
George Christensen Dawson No
John Cobb Calare No
Mark Coulton Parkes No
Tony Crook O'Connor No
John Forrest Mallee No
Luke Hartsuyker Cowper No
Michael McCormack Riverina No
Paul Neville Hinkler No
Ken O'Dowd Flynn No
Warren Truss Wide Bay No
Anna Burke Chisholm Speaker Absent
Totals (97% turnout) 73 Yes – 72 No