George Brandis (Queensland, Liberal Party, Attorney-General) Share this | Hansard source

The role will not be downgraded. The role will be treated with the same respect as it was treated when you were in office and when the Disability Discrimination Commissioner also served as the Race Discrimination Commissioner. Might I say, Senator Singh, while we are treating the Human Rights Commission, with respect, why was it that while your side of politics was in power the role of Human Rights Commissioner was left entirely vacant? The fact is that, as I said in answer to your primary question, there was not a day during the life of your government when the roles of all the human rights commissioners were fully constituted and for more than a year before you went out of office the role of human rights commissioner was allowed to fall entirely vacant. The first Attorney-General to fully constitute the Human Rights Commission happens to be me.