Coronavirus: Parliament-lite call as second MP falls

Federal parliament is set to return next week with as few MPs and staff as possible.

LNP senator Susan McDonald. Picture: Julian Tomlinson

Federal parliament is set to return next week with as few MPs and staff as possible to protect elected officials from the coronavirus, as another politician — north Queensland LNP senator Susan McDonald — tested positive for the disease.

Scott Morrison is expected to seek support from Labor for a scaled-back parliament to reduce the number of MPs travelling to Canberra for the last sitting week before the budget.

The dangers of requiring every MP to attend parliament were underlined when Senator McDonald confirmed she had become the second federal politician to catch the coronavirus, after Home ­Affairs Minister Peter Dutton ­revealed a positive test last week.

“On Friday evening, I began feeling unwell with a sore throat and a mild temperature, so I went to the Townsville Base Hospital emergency department to be tested for coronavirus before returning home, where I have been in self-isolation since that time,” she said in a statement.

“Unfortunately, the test has today come back positive and I have now been admitted to hospital, where I will remain under the direction of Queensland Health.”

Mr Dutton and Senator McDonald had not been in close contact in recent weeks.

In a statement on Monday, house Speaker Tony Smith and Senate president Scott Ryan said the public would be kept out of the parliamentary chambers when sittings resumed on Monday, while imploring MPs to bring only ­essential staff to Canberra.

The Australian understands that while the presiding officers have indicated the parliament will resume as planned next week, the government is working towards a contingency plan.

It is anticipated that the Prime Minister will seek cross-party support from Anthony Albanese for parliament to sit with only a quorum of MPs in each chamber. This would reduce the number of MPs in the house from 151 to 31, including the Speaker, and 18 in the Senate, including the president.

The Prime Minister and the Opposition Leader will meet this week. Picture: AAP

The Prime Minister said parliament had to sit to pass the $17.6bn coronavirus stimulus package and any fresh measures announced this week, insisting it could operate with a smaller number of personnel. “What we’ll be doing is — and we’ll be working on this today with the Speaker and the president of the Senate, and I’ll be talking to the Leader of the Opposition — and we’ll be proposing a series of scaled-back arrangements,” he said on Monday.

“It will enable the parliament to meet, to pass these laws and for us to get on with the job. It won’t be a necessity for all the staff to attend.”

House and Senate committees are also being asked to consider whether their business is essential and switch to teleconferencing.

Committee meetings this week have already been cancelled because of coronavirus, including Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet secretary Philip Gaetjens’s much-anticipated appearance in front of the inquiry into the sports grant scheme.

Former MPs, state parliamentarians, lobbyists and volunteers will also be barred from private areas of parliament.