Liberals could slip out early from first sitting day to attend party fundraiser
The fundraiser, billed as an "evening briefing with the leader and shadow cabinet", is due to begin at 7pm tonight, an hour before the House of Representatives is scheduled to rise.
The party leaders rallied their teams yesterday as politicians descended again on Canberra — the prime minister urging his colleagues not to take Labor's overwhelming victory "for granted", and the opposition leader telling her party room they had returned to take the fight up to the government on behalf of struggling Australians.
Ms Ley will attend this evening's ticketed event being held away from Parliament House as "special guest speaker".
The two-hour event organised through the Liberal Party's Australian Business Network advertises that Ms Ley will be joined by her shadow cabinet, though promotion material does not specify when the address will begin.
But the sitting program shows first speeches from new MPs will still be underway as the event starts, followed by a half-hour adjournment debate — closing updates to parliament that cap the sitting day and are typically little-attended by members of the house.
While MPs may miss part of sitting to attend the event, they will be in compliance with standing orders and do not risk missing a vote, since voting is suspended after 6pm.
MPs are not required to be in the chamber at all times while it is sitting, and it is common for MPs to attend events within parliament during sitting weeks.
Federal MPs are returning to parliament for the first time since Labor's overwhelming election victory on May 3, in which the party added 24 new MPs to its ranks.
After ceremonial opening events, a triumphant Labor will begin the resumption of parliament with the first sitting speeches of Ali France and Sarah Witty, the new MPs who toppled former Liberal leader Peter Dutton and former Greens leader Adam Bandt, respectively.
High on the speaking list are Anne Urquhart, who moved from the senate in Tasmania to contest the seat of Braddon, Gabriel Ng, who defeated Liberal MP Keith Wolahan in Menzies and Renee Coffey, who took the Queensland seat of Griffith from Greens MP Max Chandler-Mather.
Addressing a much more crowded caucus room yesterday, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese told his parliamentary team not to become complacent in victory.
"A lot more people try to get here than do get here. And more often than not, Labor has been at the other end of the corridor," Mr Albanese said.
"Which is why we should never, ever, ever take it for granted."
The party will introduce its first bill to slash HECS debts by 20 per cent on Wednesday, as well as legislation to cut funding from childcare providers who fail quality standards, and a bill to enshrine protections for penalty rates into law.
Ms Ley told her party room yesterday the Coalition would support constructive policies where it can, including the government's coming childcare legislation, but it would fight where policies were not in the national interest.
"Our policies are up for review, but our values are not," Ms Ley said.
"[Australians] want a parliament that understands their lives, what their lives are like, and a government gets out the way, and they also want people in Canberra who get that they want to have a crack and get ahead, because it's aspiration that connects every thread of Australian society, and it's for aspirational Australians that we will fight for every day in this place."
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