Defence Amendment (Parliamentary Joint Committee on Defence) Bill 2025; Consideration in Detail

Opened the debate

Boele moved amendments to require the appointment of two crossbench members to the proposed Defence Committee. Boele argued that the current bill excluded Independents and minor party members despite these groups receiving 34 per cent of the primary vote in the recent election. Boele contended that the exclusion of crossbench members from security and defence oversight was undemocratic and ignored the substantial experience held by some crossbench parliamentarians. Boele stated that the amendment would ensure fair representation for the one-third of voters who supported non-major-party candidates.

Government response

Khalil stated that the government would not support the amendments. Khalil explained that the membership arrangements for the new committee mirrored those of the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security. Khalil argued that this existing model had proven successful in providing effective and balanced oversight of defence matters. Khalil noted that the Prime Minister would select up to 13 members from both government and non-government ranks, maintaining the established structure.