A matter of public importance (MPI) is a term used in the Australian Parliament where a subject is put forward for debate by the parliament. It can be put forward by a Senator in the Senate

Australian Senate

The Senate is the upper house of the bicameral Parliament of Australia, the lower house being the House of Representatives. Senators are popularly elected under a system of proportional representation. Senators are elected for a term that is usually six years; after a double dissolution, however,...

 or a member of the House of Representatives

Australian House of Representatives

The House of Representatives is one of the two houses of the Parliament of Australia; it is the lower house; the upper house is the Senate. Members of Parliament serve for terms of approximately three years....

. This must be supported by a certain number of Senators or Members before the discussion can begin.

MPI's are often used by opposition parties to draw attention to government failures or areas that are politically sensitive for the government.

In 2007, the conservative Liberal-National coalition government signalled controversial changes the MPI procedure, formalizing speaking times and reducing the amount of time that independents

Independent (politician)

In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do...

have to speak.