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Wednesday, 21 September 2011
Page: 6719

The ACTING DEPUTY PRESIDENT (Senator Marshall): I inform the Senate that, at 8.30 am today, Senator Fifield and Senator Siewert each submitted a letter in accordance with standing order 75 proposing a matter of public importance for discussion. The question of which proposal would be submitted to the Senate was determined by lot, and Senator Fifield was unsuccessful and unlucky. As a result, I inform the Senate that the following letter has been received from Senator Siewert:

Dear Mr President

Pursuant to standing order 75, I propose that the following matter of public importance be submitted to the Senate for discussion:

The implications of the disaster at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant and Australia's participation at the High Level Meeting on Nuclear Safety and Security to be held on 22 September 2011 at the United Nations Headquarters.

Is the proposal supported?

More than the number of senators required by the standing orders having risen in their places—

The ACTING DEPUTY PRESIDENT: I understand that informal arrangements have been made to allocate specific times to each of the speakers in today’s debate. With the concurrence of the Senate, I shall ask the clerks to set the clock accordingly.