SenateDivision 11 · 1 Apr 2026

National Health Amendment (Passive Immunological Products) Bill 2026 - Limitation of Debate - Vaccines to be tested against an inert saline placebo

Not passed5 aye · 43 no

What this vote was about

The majority voted against an amendment introduced by One Nation, which means it failed. The amendment would have required all vaccines to be tested against an inert saline placebo in order to fall under the definition of ‘vaccine’.

Why aren't placebo-controlled trials always conducted?

According the John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health:

While placebo-controlled trials are often considered the gold standard for evaluating medical interventions, the use of inert placebos (e.g., the injection of saline solution) is not always required for vaccine trials and in fact is sometimes unethical. Trials of new vaccines may instead use comparison groups that receive the current vaccine or another established vaccine so that children receive some benefit from participating, as it would be unethical to withhold an established vaccine with demonstrated effectiveness. For example, if a hypothetical new measles vaccine were being tested, it would be unethical to withhold established measles vaccines and leave children vulnerable to disease. In this case, one group of children would receive the new vaccine, while the comparison group would receive the current measles vaccine.

Other vaccine trials may involve the use of placebos that contain vaccine components, such as adjuvants or stabilizers, but not the target antigen. By including almost all the same ingredients as the vaccine, researchers can determine if potential side effects are due to the antigen itself or one of the other ingredients.

Rebellion

South Australian Senator Alex Antic (Liberal) crossed the floor to vote "Yes" against the rest of the Liberal Party.

Amendment text

(1) Schedule 1, page 3 (after line 8), at the end of the Schedule, add:

2 Subsection 9B(7)

After "unless", insert "the vaccine has been tested against an inert saline placebo to international standard ICH E6(R3), titled Guideline for Good Clinical Practice, adopted by the International Council for Harmonisation of Technical Requirements for Pharmaceuticals for Human Use on 6 January 2025, and".

3 At the end of subsection 9B(7)

Add:

Note: The text of Guidelines adopted by the International Council for Harmonisation of Technical Requirements for Pharmaceuticals for Human Use (ICH) could in 2026 be accessed through the ICH's website (https://www.ich.org/).

Context written by They Vote For You volunteers (ODbL), reproduced unchanged.

Related bills

National Health Amendment (Passive Immunological Products) Bill 2026

By party

Party	Aye	No
Australian Labor Party	0	23
Australian Greens	0	11
Liberal–National Coalition	1	8
Pauline Hanson's One Nation	3	0
United Australia Party	1	0
Independent	0	1

Every vote

Other divisions this sitting day

What the Senate divided on around this vote, in order.

1 Apr 2026Criminal Code Amendment (Keeping Australia Safe) Bill 2026 - Second Reading - Agree with the bill's main ideaSenate 26–34
1 Apr 2026Social Security and Other Legislation Amendment (Technical Changes No. 1) Bill 2026 - Limitation of Debate - Removing upper limit for urgent payment requestsSenate 12–35
1 Apr 2026Social Security and Other Legislation Amendment (Technical Changes No. 1) Bill 2026 - Limitation of Debate - 6‑year limit on debt recovery, indexing urgent payment request limitsSenate 13–34
1 Apr 2026Social Security and Other Legislation Amendment (Technical Changes No. 1) Bill 2026 - Limitation of Debate - Remote area allowanceSenate 17–29
1 Apr 2026Commonwealth Parole Board Bill 2025, Commonwealth Parole Board (Consequential and Transitional Provisions) Bill 2025 - Second Reading - Agree with the bills' main ideaSenate 38–20
1 Apr 2026Commonwealth Parole Board Bill 2025, Commonwealth Parole Board (Consequential and Transitional Provisions) Bill 2025 - Limitation of Debate - Role of the SecretarySenate 22–35
1 Apr 2026Commonwealth Parole Board Bill 2025, Commonwealth Parole Board (Consequential and Transitional Provisions) Bill 2025 - Limitation of Debate - Role of SecretarySenate 38–21
1 Apr 2026Commonwealth Parole Board Bill 2025 and another - Limitation of Debate - Termination of appointmentsSenate 25–34
1 Apr 2026Commonwealth Parole Board Bill 2025, Commonwealth Parole Board (Consequential and Transitional Provisions) Bill 2025 - Limitation of Debate - Attorney‑General objection powerSenate 25–34
1 Apr 2026Commonwealth Parole Board Bill 2025, Commonwealth Parole Board (Consequential and Transitional Provisions) Bill 2025 - Limitation of Debate - Pass the billSenate 38–21
1 Apr 2026National Health Amendment (Passive Immunological Products) Bill 2026 - Limitation of Debate - Pass the billSenate 39–5
1 Apr 2026Excise Tariff Amendment (Draught Beer) Bill 2025 and another - Limitation of Debate - Strengthen alcohol regulationsSenate 34–24
1 Apr 2026Excise Tariff Amendment (Draught Beer) Bill 2025 and another - Limitation of Debate - Strengthen alcohol regulationsSenate 34–23
1 Apr 2026Excise Tariff Amendment (Draught Beer) Bill 2025 and another - Limitation of Debate - On-premises consumptionSenate 5–40
1 Apr 2026Excise Tariff Amendment (Draught Beer) Bill 2025 and another - Limitation of Debate - 25 per cent tax on LNG export revenueSenate 12–32
1 Apr 2026Excise Tariff Amendment (Draught Beer) Bill 2025 and another - Committee of the Whole - Tap spirits and independent reviewSenate 25–32
1 Apr 2026Excise Tariff Amendment (Draught Beer) Bill 2025, Customs Tariff Amendment (Draught Beer) Bill 2025 - Limitation of Debate - Craft beerSenate 6–38
1 Apr 2026Corporations Amendment (Digital Assets Framework) Bill 2025 - Limitation of Debate - Review and statement of reasons for refusing financial servicesSenate 25–34
1 Apr 2026Translating and Interpreting Services Bill 2025 - Limitation of Debate - Implement Multicultural Framework Review findingsSenate 12–33
1 Apr 2026Translating and Interpreting Services Bill 2025 - Limitation of Debate - National frameworkSenate 12–32
1 Apr 2026Translating and Interpreting Services Bill 2025 - Limitation of Debate - Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander languagesSenate 12–31
1 Apr 2026Translating and Interpreting Services Bill 2025 - Limitation of Debate - Additional objects and Commonwealth‑funded translating and interpreting services frameworkSenate 12–32
1 Apr 2026Migration Amendment (Combatting Migrant Exploitation) Bill 2025 - Limitation of Debate - Agree with the bill's main ideaSenate 36–25
1 Apr 2026Committees — Impact of the Conflict in Iran Select Committee; AppointmentSenate 33–27
1 Apr 2026Committees — Impact of the Conflict in Iran Select Committee; AppointmentSenate 27–33
1 Apr 2026Documents — Department of the Treasury, Home Guarantee Scheme; Order for the Production of DocumentsSenate 36–23