The Bill that Malcolm Turnbull didn’t have time for

THE government has been fighting tooth and nail to drag a couple of Bills through parliament, but there’s one that nobody is in any rush to get to.

Australia's Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has been fighting to pass a few last minute Bills through parliament, but there’s one piece of legislation there seems to be no great rush on. Picture: Lukas Coch/AAP

WHILE the government has been horsetrading and deal-making its way to the end of the sitting calendar, senior figures, including the Prime Minister have been increasingly keen to label their work this year a success.

But while MPs have invested countless sitting hours and painstaking negotiations getting Bills like the push to reinstate the construction industry watchdog over the line, there’s been one change they just haven’t had time for.

The forgotten Bill is one that ranks highly among taxpayers’ concerns, but seems to prompt little urgency from the members of parliament whom it concerns and who will have to vote on it.

It’s the proposal to scrap the Life Gold Pass travel entitlements for MPs, and it’s the one Bill that parliamentarians who may one day be able to use it seem to be just too busy for.

The Life Gold Pass was first introduced in 1918 to provide rail travel to members of parliament.

It later evolved to become more commonly used as a scheme for former senators and members, and their spouses, to jag free business class trips for life.

Members who had spent six years in the ministry, as speaker or as leader of the opposition, or 25 years on the backbench have always been entitled to the benefit.

Where the travel entitlements were once unlimited, in 2002 the number of return flights that could be taken on the pass was restricted to 25, and further cut back to 10 in 2012.

Also in 2012 the Life Gold Pass Scheme was closed to new members, but those who started their parliamentary careers more than four years ago have still been able to reap the benefits.

The luxurious entitlement costs the taxpayer around $1 million a year according to The Australian, and has added up to $17.2 million since 2001.

Malcolm Turnbull will never have to fly budget thanks to his Life Gold Pass ... and millions of dollars. Picture: Jason Edwards

More than two years ago, then prime minister Tony Abbott admitted what we all were thinking, and declared the political entitlements system was in grave need of reform.

He said he believed entitlements needed to be reined so the public could be confident their money was not being abused.

And so a Bill to scrap the Life Gold Pass and see the lavish entitlement awarded only to former prime ministers was introduced.

But since it was put on the table, the push to end Gold Pass privileges has been continually placed firmly on the backburner.

The Bill reappeared on Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull’s agenda in October this year when four former MPs took complaints about the Life Gold Pass restrictions introduced in 2012 to the High Court.

Special Minister of State Scott Ryan said then that the Bill to kill off the entitlements would be reintroduced in the coming weeks.

There’s been plenty of weeks and the time hasn’t come quite yet.

Explaining the delay in an interview on 2GB radio on Thursday morning, Mr Turnbull said his government had “a lot of big priorities” which led the Life Gold Pass decision to fall by the wayside.

He said his government’s focus had been on the Australian Building and Construction Commission Bill.

Mr Turnbull has been fighting, dealing, and negotiating tirelessly to get the ABCC and backpacker tax Bills through parliament. Picture: Mick Tsikas/AAP

When informed by presenter Chris Smith that the station’s open line had been ringing hot with listeners demanding the travel entitlements issue be addressed, the PM answered: “We hear that loud and clear”.

“We’ve had a lot of big priorities here and in particular these big industrial Bills, you’ve got to remember these were the triggers I took to the double dissolution election, these were the basis for dissolving both houses of parliament, they had to be given top priority,” he said.

“We spent three years in the last parliament not making any progress with that legislation, got nowhere with it, absolutely nowhere. I’ve succeeded in my government, in this parliament, where we have less members and senators than we did in the last parliament, now we’ve done that in just months after the parliament came back after the election.”

Mr Turnbull didn’t specifically say whether he would fight for the legislation to abolish the Life Gold Pass with the same determinedness that was employed to get the ABCC Bill through the Senate, but did indicate that now with it out of the way the entitlements Bill would have a better chance.

“Now that clears up the calendar for the rest of our agenda,” he said.

Mr Turnbull is keen to start 2017 with a clear calendar, but the other Bill that’s taken up a lot of the Prime Minister and his colleagues’ time, the backpacker tax, is one they’re still struggling to resolve.

The government remains a vote short of a majority to get its changes through parliament.