How Bob Day’s resignation will affect the Senate

BOB Day is out of the Senate, but will his Family First replacement have the same policies? And how will it impact on the upper house?

• Bob Day resigns from Senate as building empire collapses
• His exit a shock, so what now?

THE Government may not have to fight another Day.

Outgoing Family First Senator Bob Day is a strong personality, sure of himself. He was used to having plenty of money and plenty of influence long before entering the Senate.

In his local area in the Adelaide Hills, he was almost the stereotype of a pillar of the community; if not patriarchal.

Whoever replaces him will assuredly be different; the question that remains is whether the Senate outcomes will be different.

One of the battle cries of Parliament is “this is the policy we took to the election!”.

It gives a sense of dependability, stability, security. And it’s rubbish, much of the time.

The major parties are forced to negotiate, to deal with what the party faithful want; not to mention the Senate.

The minor parties – in this case a microparty with just one senator – have even more flexibility post-election.

There will be no radical departures from policy. Family First will not suddenly advocate for higher taxes so dole cheats can have the gay marriages of their dreams.

But with the fragility of the Senate, where every vote on that crossbench is precious, it’s possible a new face could bring a new outcome; a successful Bill or a differently amended one.

The Senate also sometimes seems to form packs; Independent Jacqui Lambie often throws her lot in with the Nick Xenophon Team; there are issues where Family First and the Liberal Democratic Party team up.

Senator Day voted mostly with the Government, but went rogue on some issues and his replacement is likely to do the same, so the Coalition is not fretting or popping champagne corks just yet.

While the replacement is being decided, we will see a very human story play out.

Day battled long and hard to get into Parliament, and to stay there. He survived the double dissolution and the new Senate preference rules, clinging on by his fingertips.

At the end of the Day, he spread himself and his company’s finances too thin. He concedes he didn’t leave a sufficient management plan in place for the business; as it crumbled, it took his parliamentary dreams down with it.

Now, the man who wanted to house Australia’s families and its homeless will lose his home.

In his maiden speech, Senator Day said “if every family had a job and owned a house, the benefits to this nation would be great”.

That was Family First’s main election policy; jobs and homes. And now he has lost both.