Labor has ambushed the Coalition in Parliament, which has resulted in the government voting against its own key budget measures that it has been calling on the opposition to pass as a matter of urgency.
Opposition Leader Bill Shorten caught the Coalition by surprise by calling on a vote at the end of a speech on Wednesday morning, given the opposition supports the plan to let small businesses write off new assets worth up to $20,000 in one financial year instead of four.
The government voted against the bill, despite devoting a portion of question time this week urging Labor to pass the measure.
"Let us pass this bill straight away," Prime Minister Tony Abbott said on Monday.
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"Let's get it through this place in a hurry," Small Business Minister Bruce Billson said last week.
On Wednesday, Mr Shorten obliged.
"We are not going to delay this legislation for one minute longer," he told the House of Representatives and then put forward a parliamentary procedure that if approved would allow an immediate vote.
The government opposed Labor's motion so it failed by 47 to 77 votes.
The leader of the house Christopher Pyne immediately decried the incident as a stunt, because the Senate is in estimates and not sitting this week.
"Labor are a joke. Ending the debate on small business won't get the bills to the Senate any faster – the Senate isn't in session!" he tweeted.
"So why the calls for Labor to get out of the way in such urgent tones," Labor backbencher Joanne Ryan immediately responded.
Small Business Minister Bruce Billson released a statement describing the spectacle as a "another pointless piece of politics by Labor".
Speaking at a media conference in the Canberra suburb of Dickson a short time later, Mr Shorten said: "If they're in such a hurry to help small business, why were they so slow today?"
"I think the government's got some explaining to do," he said.
