Politics live as Turnbull responds to Westminster attack

End of the day. What happened?

• a raft of welfare changes and cuts were passed by the Senate at midnight last night;
• these are the savings measures designed to offset the government's childcare changes;
• the Senate will sit late tonight but it is expected to have enough votes to pass the legislation;
• security was tightened at Parliament in the aftermath of the London terrorist attack; and
• Parliament paused at the start of the question time to remember those killed and injured in the attack.

My thanks to Andrew Meares and Alex Ellinghausen for their superb work and to you for reading and commenting.

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Andrew, Alex and I will be back - with the rest of the parliamentary crew - on Monday. Until then, enjoy your evening and weekend.

The childcare changes are expected to pass the Senate late tonight.

The government already has the support of Derryn Hinch and the Nick Xenophon Team which leaves it in search of another five votes.

It's pretty confident.

Politics - where you have to get on with everyone.

But it's all okay because it's within the rules.

Small Business Minister Michael McCormack has charged taxpayers nearly $50,000 to stay in his wife's Canberra apartment but has defended the spending by comparing his travel allowance to penalty rates.

"I get a travel allowance, others get penalty rates - it's part of the package," he told his local newspaper, The Daily Advertiser in Wagga Wagga.

By way of public service announcement....

Attorney-General George Brandis has referred the issue of how Australia's federal family law system can better support and protect people affected by family violence.

Of particular interest to the committee, which will be chaired by government MP Sarah Henderson, is the issue of allowing victims to be cross examined by their abusers. 

Former Australian of the Year Rosie Batty has been campaigning on this issue for quite some time.

You can find more information about the inquiry here including an anonymous survey if you have experienced family violence.

Swipe.....

Oh for crying out loud.

Bob Katter is trying to out-Hanson Pauline Hanson.

He has put out a press release claiming: "Europe is having a serious terrorist attack every week. Australia is having them once every three or four weeks."

There is no other word for that than WRONG.

And that's it for question time.

The opposition is goading the government about whether the part of the ten year, $50 billion company tax plan might get shelved ahead of the May budget.

It has been devoting several questions to this subject each question time.

It produced a rather energetic attack on treasury spokesman Chris Bowen from Mr Morrison who waved his book around saying his publishers motto was "books with spine".

Treasurer Scott Morrison, while not answering a question about company tax, says Labor MPs are the "twitter trolls" of public policy.

"They're like the pimply teenagers  sitting in their basement trolling away."

NXT MP Rebekha Sharkie asks Mr Turnbull why there is no longer a minister for youth affairs.

Mr Turnbull looks aggrieved: "I'm honoured to lead a thoroughly youthful ministry - some of us more in heart than years."

"It would be a mistake to imagine only the young care about the young."

Childcare spokeswoman Kate Ellis starts with a question about the changes that would see the number of hours of childcare children are entitled to reduced.

Social Services Minister Christian Porter starts by attacking Labor for the rise in fees that occurred while it was in office.

"That is the best balance and the best approach," Mr Porter says in the interests of "making the package sustainable."

Opposition Leader Bill Shorten also speaks.

There is a minute's silence.

Mr Turnbull says the attack was on "parliaments, freedom and democracies everywhere in the world".

"We will never change the way we live," Mr Turnbull says.

"A necessary precondition for our harmony is national security....We confront these challenges from a position of strength and unity."

He says an Australian permanent resident was among those injured in the attack.

Question time begins with statements on the London terrorist attacks.

Britain's High Commissioner, Menna Rawlings, is on the floor of the chamber.

Are you ready for question time?

I should clarify that the comments from Mr Khan referenced by Senator Hanson were made last year but she makes it sound as if they were in response to the attack.

In case you don't feel like watching the video let me tell you what it says.

After taking a swipe at the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, Senator Hanson says she knows how to prevent a terrorist attack from happening in Australia.

It won't surprise you to know she thinks banning Islam would do the trick: "That's how you solve the problem."

Easy.

But then, after a few hours, there's this: