“If Mr Rudd, Ms Gillard and the Labor Party are proposing respect for the Senate then they should start with their own party and demonstrate how they respect the proper process of the Senate and the freedom of how Senators in their party vote.

“They should make a public statement now that their Senators will no longer be bound by a pledge to Caucus but will be bound by the aspirations of their state and shall freely review and amend legislation.

“The Labor party has brought about the debauching of the Senate process with this anachronistic one-in-all-in approach so no one could competently say their Senators are doing their individual jobs for their respective States.

“I challenge Mr Rudd and Ms Gillard to take the Labor Party Senate from the 19th Century to the 21st Century as a sign of good faith in how they expect the Senate to act in the future.

“I will endeavour to continue to do my job but I think it is hypocritical in the extreme when they ask the Senate to change but they intend to remain the same.

“The clear question is: are Mr Rudd and Ms Gillard going to inspire the reform, expected by the Australian people, of how their Senators should work in our Senate?

“Labor Senators are immediately expelled from the Labor party and dis-endorsed if they cross the floor. The last Labor Senator to do so was Senator George Georges from Queensland in 1987 and he was immediately expelled. I don’t think Australia would call that respect for the Senate.

“I also don’t believe every Senator in the Labor Party has agreed in unison to every decision since then. But, I do know they all have sworn on an oath to uphold a constitution which requires Senators, in good faith, to review and amend legislation. So who is more important, Australia or the Labor Party?”