Graham Perrett (Moreton, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

On behalf of the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights, I present the committee's report entitled Human rights scrutiny report: report 1 of 2018. I seek leave of the House to make a short statement in connection with the report—and I guarantee it will be shorter than the member for Hunter's comments!

Leave granted.

I rise to speak to the tabling of the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights' Human Rights Scrutiny Report 1 of 2018.

The role of the committee is to examine bills and legislative instruments for compatibility with Australia's obligations under international human rights laws, as expressed by treaties and the like.

The committee's report provides parliament with a credible technical examination of the human rights implications of legislation rather than an assessment of the broader policy involved. Committee members performing a scrutiny function are not bound by the contents or conclusions of scrutiny committee reports and may have different views in relation to the policy merits of legislation.

I note that several bills examined in the current report are scheduled for debate this week, including in relation to:

Several bills scheduled for debate this week did not raise any human rights concerns, and others have been examined in more detail to assess compatibility. Of the new bills in the current report, 13 were assessed as either promoting human rights, permissibly limiting human rights or not engaging human rights. The committee is also seeking further information in relation to 10 bills and legislative instruments.

The report also contains the committee's concluded examination of eight bills and instruments. Following correspondence with the relevant minister, the committee has concluded that six of these bills and instruments are likely to be compatible with international human rights law. This illustrates the constructive process of liaising with legislation proponents to identify relevant information in order to assist the committee in its assessment of legislation.

Finally, I note that Dr Jacqueline Mowbray, of the University of Sydney, recently commenced as the committee's new external legal adviser. The legal adviser provides the committee with independent advice on the compatibility of legislation with international human rights law. On behalf of the committee, I would like to welcome Dr Mowbray to the position and I look forward to her contribution. On behalf of the committee, I would also like to thank the committee's former legal adviser, Dr Aruna Sathanapally, for her services to the committee and I particularly wish her well for the future.

I encourage my fellow members and others to examine the committee's report to better inform their consideration of proposed legislation, because chipping away at human rights makes for a very dull and very dangerous world.

With these comments, I commend the committee's report No. 1 of 2018 to the House.

Report made a parliamentary paper in accordance with standing order 39(e).

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