Conservatives want SA parliament review

Australian Conservatives' upper house MP Robert Brokenshire wants a dramatic overhaul of the South Australian parliament.

A general view of the SA houses of assembly in Parliament

Australian Conservatives MP Robert Brokenshire wants a review of the South Australian parliament. (AAP)

The South Australian parliament needs greater accountability and a maximum of two terms for premiers, the Australian Conservatives say.

Upper house MP Robert Brokenshire says the parliament is overdue for a review and has put forward a suite of changes to encourage a more bipartisan operation.

They include optional preferential voting in the lower house, abolishing paid parliamentary secretaries and an increase in the number of standing committees.

Premiers would also be limited to serving for two terms, equal to eight years while the lower house would get an independent speaker and the upper house an independent president.

Earlier this month Senator Nick Xenophon called for fewer MPs and more sitting days to turn parliament into a "workhorse for South Australians".

Senator Xenophon is planning to leave the federal parliament to stand for a lower house seat in SA at the next state election in March.

But Mr Brokenshire said the senator's suggestions were disingenuous and short-sighted.

"It is time we took a magnifying glass to how we do things in this state," he said.

"I am talking about a full review of the way parliament runs, something which needs to go much further than the warm, fuzzy, simplistic headline-grabbing reforms suggested by Mr Xenophon."


Share

2 min read

Published

Source: AAP



Share this with family and friends


Get SBS News daily and direct to your Inbox

Sign up now for the latest news from Australia and around the world direct to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

Download our apps
SBS News
SBS Audio
SBS On Demand

Listen to our podcasts
An overview of the day's top stories from SBS News
Interviews and feature reports from SBS News
Your daily ten minute finance and business news wrap with SBS Finance Editor Ricardo Gonçalves.
A daily five minute news wrap for English learners and people with disability
Get the latest with our News podcasts on your favourite podcast apps.

Watch on SBS
SBS World News

SBS World News

Take a global view with Australia's most comprehensive world news service
Watch the latest news videos from Australia and across the world