The short answer

House of Representatives sitting 24 June 2026: Building Cooperative Workplaces Bill passes after divisions

The House of Representatives sitting on Tuesday 24 June 2026 saw the passage of the Workplace Relations Legislation Amendment (Building Cooperative Workplaces No. 1) Bill 2026 following multiple divisions in both the second reading and consideration-in-detail stages. The House also debated the Health Legislation Amendment (Improving Choice and Transparency for Private Health Consumers) Bill 2026 and the Regulatory Reform Omnibus Bill 2026. Question Time covered the economy, Australian War Memorial funding, housing, cost of living, local government, wages, defence industry, avian influenza and paid parental leave. A matter of public importance debate on data centres drew contributions from ten members. The Federation Chamber separately considered the Customs Tariff Amendment (Incorporation of Proposals) Bill (No. 1) 2026 and constituency statements.

This is a method for assessing public claims, not a verdict on a party or a direction on how to vote. Conclusions should change when the underlying law, data or implementation evidence changes.

The useful question is not only “what is the rule?” but also “who administers it, which document controls it, and when might it change?” That distinction prevents an accurate general explanation from becoming wrong advice in a particular election, chamber or policy setting.

Evidence review

Legislative business: three bills debated, one passed

The most significant legislative outcome of the sitting day was passage of the Workplace Relations Legislation Amendment (Building Cooperative Workplaces No. 1) Bill 2026. The second reading debate saw speeches from Dan Tehan, Julie-Ann Campbell, Leon Rebello, Tom French, Zoe McKenzie, Madonna Jarrett, Kate Chaney, Helen Haines, Carina Garland, Allegra Spender, Ash Ambihaipahar, Anne Webster, Jo Briskey, Llew O'Brien, Alice Jordan-Baird, Andrew Wallace, Mary Aldred, Sam Birrell, Tom Venning and Michael McCormack. The House divided on the second reading, moved to consideration in detail where independent MP Allegra Spender and the minister exchanged amendments, divided again, and then passed the bill on the third reading.

The Regulatory Reform Omnibus Bill 2026 and the Customs Tariff Amendment (Incorporation of Proposals) Bill (No. 1) 2026 were introduced and referred to the Federation Chamber for further debate. The Health Legislation Amendment (Improving Choice and Transparency for Private Health Consumers) Bill 2026 had its second reading debate in the main chamber with speeches from Trish Cook, Andrew Wallace, Claire Clutterham, Luke Gosling, Renee Coffey and Rowan Holzberger.

Evidence review

Question Time: the economy, defence and housing

Question Time on 24 June 2026 consisted of four rotations of questions without notice. The opening round saw Angus Taylor ask about the economy, Luke Gosling inquire about the Australian War Memorial, Tim Wilson return to economic matters, and David Smith raise housing. The second rotation covered local government (Sophie Scamps), cost of living (Carina Garland), and housing again (Aaron Violi).

The third rotation addressed wages and salaries (Madonna Jarrett), the Prime Minister (Alison Penfold asked two questions), domestic and family violence (Kara Cook), and the Australian Defence Force (Sam Lim). The fourth rotation included avian influenza (Rebekha Sharkie), defence industry (Matt Burnell), the budget (Zoe McKenzie), paid parental leave (Alicia Payne), workplace relations (Allegra Spender), and local government (Ash Ambihaipahar). Hansard records the questions and answers as spoken but does not independently verify factual claims made by either side.

Evidence review

Matter of public importance: data centres

The matter of public importance debate focused on data centres and their implications for energy consumption, land use and regulatory frameworks in an era of expanding digital infrastructure. The MPI was proposed by independent MP Zali Steggall (Warringah), who has been a persistent voice on climate and energy issues in the parliament.

Ten members contributed to the debate: Zali Steggall, Andrew Charlton, Allegra Spender, Claire Clutterham, Elizabeth Watson-Brown, Jo Briskey, Andrew Wilkie, Jerome Laxale, Nicolette Boele, and Julie-Ann Campbell. The debate reflected growing parliamentary interest in how Australia manages the infrastructure demands of the digital economy, including questions about whether data centres' energy and water consumption should be subject to more rigorous planning and environmental assessment processes.

Evidence review

Members' statements and 90-second contributions

The 90-second statements period covered a broad range of electorate issues. Topics included the gas industry (Elizabeth Watson-Brown), the budget (multiple members including Pat Conaghan, Llew O'Brien, David Littleproud, Michael McCormack and Andrew Hastie), community events in Clark (Andrew Wilkie), the anniversary of the Battle of Binh Ba (Luke Gosling), King's Birthday honours (Jamie Chaffey), wages and salaries (David Smith), visas (Garth Hamilton), housing (Ali France), early childhood education (Jo Briskey), the Prime Minister (Darren Chester and David Moncrieff), and social cohesion (Josh Burns).

Evidence review

Federation Chamber and committee business

The Federation Chamber opened with constituency statements on disaster management (Helen Haines), schools in Blair (Shayne Neumann), cost of living (Dai Le), small business (Angie Bell), bowel cancer (Sam Rae), Iran (Julian Leeser), and multiculturalism (Claire Clutterham). The Federation Chamber then debated the Regulatory Reform Omnibus Bill and the Customs Tariff Amendment Bill. Minister Trish Cook also delivered a ministerial statement on the Regional Ministerial Budget Statement.

In committee business, the Selection Committee presented its report, the Intelligence and Security Joint Committee and the Primary Industries Committee had membership changes reported, the Auditor-General tabled Report No. 41 of 2025-26, and documents were presented by Speaker Milton Dick and Leader of the House Tony Burke.

Evidence review

Adjournment debate

The adjournment debate, the final item of business before the House rises, saw members raise local issues from their electorates across a range of portfolios. Andrew Gee (Independent, Calare) spoke on the Great Western Highway upgrade, a major infrastructure project in his central-western New South Wales electorate that has been the subject of sustained advocacy by local communities and councils. Lisa Chesters (Labor, Bendigo) addressed the Australian War Memorial and defence equipment matters.

Ben Small (Liberal, Pearce) discussed the fuel tax credits scheme and its importance to primary producers and regional businesses in Western Australia. Carina Garland (Labor, Chisholm) raised school-related matters in her Melbourne electorate. Tom Venning (Independent, Barker) addressed rural and remote services, and Tom French (Independent, Indi) spoke on media and budget matters affecting regional Victoria.

Common questions

Before you rely on the answer

Did the Workplace Relations Bill pass the House on 24 June 2026?

Yes. According to the Hansard record, the Workplace Relations Legislation Amendment (Building Cooperative Workplaces No. 1) Bill 2026 passed the House on 24 June 2026 after divisions on the second reading, consideration in detail, and third reading.

What was the matter of public importance debated on 24 June 2026?

The MPI was on data centres, proposed by independent MP Zali Steggall. Ten members spoke, raising concerns about energy consumption, land use and the regulatory framework for Australia's growing data centre industry.

Does Hansard verify the factual claims made during Question Time?

No. Hansard is a verbatim record of what members and ministers said in the chamber. It is not a fact-checking service. Claims made by MPs in questions and answers — for example about economic performance, defence spending or housing policy — are recorded as spoken but their factual accuracy is not independently assessed by Hansard transcription.

Source spine

Primary material used for this guide

Review trigger: Subsequent parliamentary proceedings, corrections to the Hansard record, or passage of bills mentioned

Archive note: This article reviews the Hansard transcript of a single sitting day. It summarises what was said in the chamber and the procedural outcomes recorded, not the veracity of claims made by members.

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