The govt faces battles over media reforms, Gonski 2.0 in the Senate

The Turnbull government is fighting to legislate its proposed media reforms and schools funding changes.

Federal opposition communications spokeswoman Michelle Rowland.

Labor has hit out at One Nation’s compromise plan for media reforms as the government prepares to put the package and other key pieces of legislation to a vote in the Senate.

Warning against devising policy on the run, opposition communications spokeswoman Michelle Rowland said One Nation’s suggestion of a new three-out-of-four rule was “confused” while the Greens urged the government to split the bill and pass changes that all parties had agreed on.

The opposition will finalise its position on the overhaul in a ­caucus meeting tomorrow and stressed a willingness to support “most of the stand-alone elements proposed”, including licence fee relief.

However the abolition of the two-out-of-three rule, which prevents a person owning TV, radio and newspaper companies in a ­single market, is a major sticking point for Labor, the Greens and One Nation.

If Labor and the Greens remain opposed to the reforms, the government will need to win over 10 of the 12 Senate crossbenchers for the bill to become law.

The government is also facing a battle in the Senate to legislate its Gonski 2.0 reforms while the $6.2 billion big banks levy and Medicare Guarantee Fund are due to pass parliament this week with bipartisan support.

One Nation leader Pauline Hanson, who leads a crucial bloc of four crossbenchers, has proposed establishing a three-out-of-four ownership rule in a bid to break the Senate impasse over media ­reforms.

The rule would allow a person to own a TV station, radio network and newspaper in the same city but ensure they could not control both a commercial TV licence and pay-TV licence.

Ms Rowland told The Australian: “I do make the observation that a three-out-of-four rule may be confused at a basic conceptual level. In mixing up services that are confined to specific licence areas with service licences that are not so confined, the consequences of which may vary for different incumbent media operators.”

Greens leader Richard Di ­Natale was unswayed by a united front big media companies had presented in demanding reform, saying the two-out-of-three rule had not made a “significant difference” to the Ten Network’s voluntary administration.

Communications Minister Mitch Fifield urged Bill Shorten to put Australian businesses and jobs above “cheap political games” and give the media industry certainty by backing the reforms.

“The government’s package is unanimously supported by the ­entire industry and it should be passed as a whole,” he said.