Duty done, trusts to go

The mini-rush before the final rush

Heads up, today's edition is long: it's the last House sitting day until 23 November; the Senate is back a week earlier, from 16 November - the last sitting period of 2026 for the Parliament.

The tax package, the three gas bills and the Defence bill are all put to a vote with no further debate to push as much forward before the House rises this afternoon. Outside the chamber, the RBA and ABS (abs.gov.au) obviously reported quarterly CPI and monthly inflation figures that put annual inflation at 4.3 per cent for September, up from 4.0, and the markets now price (abc.net.au) an 87 per cent chance of a rate rise next Tuesday. Here's where to watch.

Today, in the House

And so the rush for the push. Each bill on the list today will be put with ten minutes for each amendment, so the running order below is also the order of the votes:

• Treasury Laws Amendment (Tax Reform No. 3) Bill 2026 (aph.gov.au): three second reading amendments to dispose of first - (Wilson (Liberal)) to withdraw or delay the trust minimum tax by 12 months and split the bill; Chaney (Independent) to fix when a testamentary trust is "established" and stop one ineligible beneficiary in a will tainting the whole trust; Scamps (Independent) for mandatory small business impact statements - then second reading, consideration in detail and third reading. Crossbench and opposition detail amendments are already slated.
• Income Tax Rates Amendment (Minimum Tax on Discretionary Trusts) Bill 2026 (aph.gov.au): all stages.
• Treasury Laws Amendment (Tax Reform No. 4) Bill 2026 (aph.gov.au): second reading amendments from Spender (CSA), calling for a simpler innovative business CGT concession built on an "active asset" test, and Chaney (Independent), calling for the R&D tax incentive age limit to be lifted for companies developing medicines and medical technology, then all remaining stages. Detail amendments from Ryan (Independent), Spender and Joyce (Nationals) have been circulated, with Spender's capturing headlines (smartcompany.com.au).
• Domestic Gas Reservation Bill 2026 (aph.gov.au): comes back from the Federation Chamber with an unresolved question, a four-deep stack of second reading amendments - Katter (KAP) on Steggall (CSA) on Ryan (Independent) on Watson-Brown (Greens) - that the chamber could not settle. None changes the bill's text. The House votes on the stack, then detail and third reading.
• Domestic Gas Reservation (Consequential Amendments) Bill 2026 (aph.gov.au) and Domestic Gas Reservation Levy Bill 2026 (aph.gov.au): third readings only, both having passed the second reading in the Federation Chamber without amendment.
• Defence Legislation Amendment (Accelerating Capability and Protecting Bases) Bill 2026 (aph.gov.au): third reading only, after a second reading in the Federation Chamber without amendment.

Also today, with a third reading by leave, is the Child Support and Family Assistance Legislation Amendment (Ending Financial Abuse in the Child Support Scheme No. 1) Bill 2026 (aph.gov.au), carrying second reading amendments from McIntosh (Liberal) and Steggall (CSA).

Against yesterday's schedule, the tax bills were debated as planned but a motion to extend Husic's (Labor) speaking time was refused, and the gas bills lost the Federation Chamber's quorum four times before the Katter amendment stalled the main bill.

The House passed the Online Safety Amendment (Digital Duty of Care) Bill 2026 (aph.gov.au) yesterday, 96 votes to 38, after a morning of divisions that kept the government's own amendments and a set from Chaney (Independent) in the bill, and everything else out. If you're following this one, the detail is important for what the Senate now inherits in its next sitting:

• McIntosh (Liberal) moved to decline the bill a second reading was defeated 40 to 96, with Coalition members and Sharkie (Centre Alliance) making up the 40the government's 15 technical amendments, which preserve existing industry codes and standards until the new regime starts, narrow the exempt-content definition and clarify the "nudify app" definition, passed 97 to 39. Minister Wells said deepfakes causing serious harm are already covered as adult cyberabuse and left the wider AI question to the Joint Select Committee on Artificial Intelligence (aph.gov.au)
• Chaney's eight amendments passed 97 to 30 with government support. They add a new category of harm to children, material or conduct that "simulates emotional intimacy" and fosters dependence in place of human relationships, which Chaney said would capture AI companions and general chatbots, naming ChatGPT and Claude, and they require user empowerment tools such as algorithm opt-outs to be prominent, accessible and functional, with a civil penalty of 6,000 penalty units
• Scamps' amendments for an Online Services Ombudsman lost 9 to 73, Boele's (Independent) global-turnover penalties were negatived on the voices and Le's (Independent) small business exemption lost 11 to 72.

Also yesterday, the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission Bill 2026 (aph.gov.au) and the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission (National Policing Information Charges) Bill 2026 (aph.gov.au) were not finished and sit in the Federation Chamber again this morning with debate to be adjourned, so they carry over to November.

The three government bills introduced are now live: Agriculture Legislation Amendment (Biosecurity and Export Control) Bill 2026 (aph.gov.au), Competition and Consumer Amendment (AER Inquiry Powers) Bill 2026 (aph.gov.au) and Health Legislation Amendment (Improved Medicare Integrity and Other Measures) Bill 2026 (aph.gov.au).

Today, in the Senate

The final day of Supplementary Budget Estimates (aph.gov.au), which Statekraft app subscribers can watch live, sees:

• Economics Legislation Committee: ASIC at 9am, APRA 9.50am, the ABS 10.45am, then Industry, Science and Resources from 11.40am with the AI Safety Institute and the Chief Scientist from 2.10pm, the National Reconstruction Fund Corporation at 4.40pm and CSIRO at 7.10pm
• Community Affairs Legislation Committee: Health, Disability and Ageing from 9am, the National Disability Insurance Agency and the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission from 12.15pm, and Social Services from 4.30pm.
• Education and Employment Legislation Committee: Education from 9am, child care and the Child Care Subsidy from 2.15pm, higher education from 4.45pm and the ANU at 8pm.
• Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade Legislation Committee: Defence from 9am, the Australian Submarine Agency at 2.45pm, the Australian Signals Directorate at 4.10pm and Veterans' Affairs from 7pm.

Yesterday's Economics hearing was dominated by the inflation print. Treasury Secretary Jenny Wilkinson told the committee the surprise had been private demand running stronger than expected, rather than public spending, and the Reserve Bank Governor Michele Bullock named (abc.net.au) private sector activity, global pressures and weak productivity as the main drivers. In the House, Chalmers (Treasurer) put the same case and pointed to the Middle East war and a burst of private investment in data centres, while the Coalition used Question Time and a matter of public importance to argue government spending is the problem. The Treasurer also played down any return of the fuel excise discount.

From the committees

Reports tabled in the House today:

• Standing Committee of Privileges and Members' Interests (aph.gov.au): report concerning a subpoena issued by the Federal Court of Australia and possible issues of parliamentary privilege Parliamentary Joint Committee on the National Anti-Corruption Commission (aph.gov.au): report on proposed recommendations for appointments to the National Anti-Corruption Commission
• Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit: Report 519, Inquiry into the administration of the National Disability Insurance Scheme (aph.gov.au), with the NDIA appearing at Estimates
• Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade: report on the Inquiry into strengthening Australia's trade and investment relations with Africa (aph.gov.au).

Deadlines today and tomorrow: submissions close today for the Senate Economics Legislation Committee's inquiries into the Domestic Gas Reservation Bill 2026 and related bills (aph.gov.au) (report due 11 November) and into the Tax Reform No. 3 and Minimum Tax on Discretionary Trusts bills (aph.gov.au) (hearings 5 and 6 November, report due 13 November). Submissions to the Environment and Communications Legislation Committee's inquiry into the Online Safety Amendment (Digital Duty of Care) Bill 2026 (aph.gov.au) close tomorrow, with hearings on 9 and 10 November and a report due 20 November, which now sets the pace for the bill the House passed yesterday. The Joint Select Committee on Artificial Intelligence (aph.gov.au), which the minister pointed to on deepfakes, is due to report on 30 November.

No inquiry public hearings today; but tomorrow brings five, all in Canberra:

• Joint Select Committee on Artificial Intelligence (aph.gov.au)
• House Standing Committee on Primary Industries on critical minerals social licence (aph.gov.au)
• Senate Economics Legislation Committee on the gas bills (aph.gov.au)
• Senate Environment and Communications Legislation Committee on the Carbon Credits and Other Legislation Amendment (Integrity and Transparency) Bill 2026 (aph.gov.au)
• Senate Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade References Committee on Department of Veterans' Affairs funded health treatment (aph.gov.au).

Weekly wrap coming your way tomorrow, and like many sitting periods before this one, there has been a lot of business transpire. Know someone who'd find Krafted. useful? Send them the sign-up link (statekraft.au).

Until tomorrow!

— Mia