Senator Pauline Hanson,who is attending Parliament via video link,initially said One Nation would abstain from a vote to derail a government-backed inquiry into the ABC and SBS’s complaints processes.

Senator Pauline Hanson,who is attending Parliament via video link,initially said One Nation would abstain from a vote to derail a government-backed inquiry into the ABC and SBS’s complaints processes.Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

Meanwhile,One Nation,which had declared it would abstain – a move that would have ensured the inquiry was halted – later backflipped and signalled their intention to vote with the government.

The ensuing chaos resulted in Labor,the Greens and independent crossbenchers teaming up to deliver ABC chair Ita Buttrose’s plea for the Senate to abandon the inquiry while the broadcaster was conducting its own external review into the issue.

Liberal senator Andrew Bragg,who as chairman of the Senate standing committee on environment and communications instigated the inquiry,criticised the outcome as “a backward step for our democracy”.

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“It sets a terrible precedent for the Senate to close public access,especially where more than a dozen submissions have already been received as evidence,” Senator Bragg said.

Senator Rennick is now pushing for the motion to be recommitted on Wednesday,giving him another opportunity to vote with the government and ensure the inquiry remains on foot.

The establishment of the inquiry split the communications committee,with deputy chair Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young leading the push to derail it after Ms Buttrose last week declared it an act of political interference designed to undermine the review commissioned by the ABC board.

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Senator Hanson-Young said the Senate had saved the ABC from partisan interference after the motion passed on Tuesday.

“An independent review of the ABC’s complaints system is under way. A Senate inquiry established outside of normal processes and running in parallel was inappropriate. It is nothing more than political interference by the Morrison government,” she said.

Senator Bragg used the government’s majority on the committee to set up the inquiry,breaking from the typical procedure whereby inquires are established following a vote on the floor of the Senate.

He said the ABC’s inquiry would not be as strong as the Senate’s because it would not involve public hearings,where evidence would be protected by parliamentary privilege.

“The ABC’s inquiry is not independent as the ABC’s investigators will report to the ABC,” Senator Bragg said.

One Nation leader Pauline Hanson,a critic of the ABC,said on Tuesday morning she and senator Malcolm Roberts would abstain from voting on the Senate motion due to frustration at the government’s failure to “rein in” the public broadcaster,which she claimed was biased. She said the inquiry was unnecessary and called on the government to crack down on the ABC.

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“All it’s going to do is create another inquiry. The government has known for a long,long time about the problems with the ABC. I’m sick of things going to more and more inquiries,” Senator Hanson said. “The buck stops with the Prime Minister.”

She reversed that position hours later,backing the government’s attempts to keep the Senate inquiry on foot. Senator Hanson and Senator Roberts,who are both unvaccinated against COVID-19,are attending Parliament via video link to avoid having to undergo hotel quarantine on their return to Queensland,as per the state government’s rules. This means they cannot vote directly on legislation or motions but can still influence the outcome by requesting a pair for the vote.

A parliamentary “pairing” is an arrangement that allows MPs and Senators from opposing political parties to pair off and both be absent for votes in the chamber,keeping the numbers constant.

The motion,which prevailed by 23 votes to 22,directed the environment and communications legislation committee “to suspend the inquiry into ABC and SBS complaints handling until the independent review of the ABC’s complaints system”.

Independent senators Stirling Griff,Rex Patrick and Jacqui Lambie voted with Labor and the Greens.

The findings from the ABC’s inquiry – to be led by former Commonwealth ombudsman John McMillan and former SBS,Seven and Ten news boss Jim Carroll – are expected in April,while the Senate inquiry was scheduled to report by February. With a federal election due before May,a suspension of the Senate inquiry until after the ABC review means Senator Bragg will be unable to revive it until the next Parliament.

Ms Buttrose commissioned the ABC review after a series of complaints,including from federal and state politicians,about how the broadcaster’s internal division reviews complaints about programs such as theGhost Train series into the 1979 Luna Park tragedy.

An ABC spokesman said the broadcaster welcomed the Senate vote “to defend the ABC’s independence” and suspend the inquiry. The ABC would now continue with the independent review of the complaints system commissioned by the board in October and an issues paper would be released shortly for public comment.

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correction

An earlier version of this story incorrectly reported One Nation abstained from the vote on a motion to suspend the Senate inquiry. It ultimately used pairing arrangements to align its vote with that of the government.

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