Questions arising in the Senate shall be determined by a majority of votes, and each senator shall have one vote. The President shall in all cases be entitled to a vote; and when the votes are equal the question shall pass in the negative.

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Questions arising in the Senate, other than those arising from decisions referred to in s.50(2)(i), shall be determined by a majority of votes, and each senator shall have one vote. A member presiding in the Senate is entitled to vote on a question put while he or she is presiding, but shall not have a casting vote. When the votes are equal the question shall pass in the negative.

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Questions arising in the Senate, other than those arising from decisions referred to in s.50(2)(i), shall be determined by a majority of votes, and each senator shall have one vote. A member presiding in the Senate is entitled to vote on a question put while he or she is presiding, but shall not have a casting vote. The President shall in all cases be entitled to a vote; and w When the votes are equal the question shall pass in the negative.

23.1 Presently the section states that questions in the Senate are determined by majority vote. The section requires amendment to incorporate the proposal that the standing orders of each House of Parliament will in future require that rulings during debates cannot be overturned except by a two-thirds majority: see proposed s.50(2)(i). Accordingly the amendment exempts such questions from the general rule that the majority prevails.
23.2 The section requires further amendment consequent upon the presiding officer in the Senate being changed from the President of the Senate to the Deputy Governor-General of Parliament. This does not have an impact on who can vote. An ordinary Senator standing in for the Deputy Governor-General will have an ordinary right to vote, as is presently the case. The Deputy Governor-General will not be a member of the Senate - see proposed s.60A(3).
23.3 Unlike the Speaker of the House, the Senate President does not have a casting vote. The amendment proposes to confirm this expressly in s.23, for two reasons. The principal reason is to negate any argument that the express negation in the proposed s.40 of a casting vote for the Speaker, and the absence of such a provision in relation to a presiding senator, implies that the latter does have a casting vote. Secondly expressly negating a casting vote ensures that ordinary voters do not misunderstand the position when reading the clause.