Prime Minister

A small majority voted in favour of a motion introduced by Senator Maria Kovacic (Liberal), which means it was successful.

Motion text

That the Senate—

(a) notes that:

(i) order for the production of documents no. 586, agreed to by the Senate on 13 August 2026, concerning correspondence from the Government of Japan and related matters, has not been complied with,

(ii) the Assistant Minister to the Prime Minister stated in his response, dated 17 August 2026, that a matter has been referred to the Australian Federal Police, and as a result, it would be inappropriate to respond to the order at this time, and

(iii) the Assistant Minister to the Prime Minister has not specified the harm to the public interest that could result from disclosure of the requested documents;

(b) rejects the grounds that the minister has provided for refusing to comply with the order; and

(c) requires the Minister representing the Prime Minister to comply with the order by no later than midday on Thursday, 20 August 2026, or specify the grounds on which the minister believes disclosure of the requested documents is not in the public interest.