CANBERRA – Federal parliament began a bitter final
sitting day before a May budget, with Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull
considering dissolving both houses of parliament and calling an early election
to end a hostile Senate.

Independent and minor party senators elected at the last
election in 2013 have stalled key aspects of the government’s agenda, including
changes that would make higher education and health care more expensive and
limit access to welfare.

Senate voting reforms proposed by Mr Turnbull, would
make it harder for smaller parties to enter parliament through vote sharing
deals and are supported by the opposition Greens Party, which controls enough
of the Senate to insure passage of the reforms.

Australian Motoring Enthusiasts Party Senator Ricky Muir
was elected in 2013 with less than one percent of the popular vote as a result
of complex vote sharing deals between small parties agreed to privately ahead
of the vote.

Immigration Minister Peter Dutton predicted passage of
the voting changes, which are supported by business groups angered by three
years of partisan gridlock amid an economic slowdown driven by a plunge in
commodities prices.

“We can’t go to the ballot box, cast a vote and not
know where that vote is going to end up,” Dutton said in an interview with
Sydney’s 2GB Radio.

Malcolm Turnbull has consistently led opinion polls
since he came to power last year and his ruling Liberal-National coalition is
leading the opposition Labor party comfortably in recent polls. But there are
signs Mr Turnbull’s honeymoon period as prime minister may be ending, prompting
election speculation.

An election is due by January 2017, but has been
expected to be called for the second half of 2016.

The prime minister is unlikely to opt for a rare double
dissolution election, which sees both houses of parliament face voters, if the
voting reforms fail to pass as it could return a similarly hostile group of
smaller parties as he currently faces.

Under the country’s constitution, Turnbull faces a May
11 deadline to call a double dissolution election and the earliest it could be
held is June.

In order to call such a poll, he needs a piece of
legislation twice defeated by the Senate as the trigger.

He has a labour bill which has been defeated once, but
would need to recall parliament early to May 3 to allow time to reintroduce the
labour bill and have it voted on by the Senate before the May 11 deadline.

But to recall parliament early, Mr Turnbull must bring
forward the May 10 budget as an excuse.

– with Reuters