Don Farrell (SA, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Leader of the Opposition in the Senate) Share this | Hansard source

Yes, today. While he was fighting in World War I in Ypres 100 years ago—in fact, not that far from where Senator Cormann came from—his grandmother used to write to him. Being of Irish extraction, she was very critical of the fact that he had decided to sign up and fight for England, but he persisted. He was injured at one stage and gassed at one stage, but fortuitously he returned to South Australia after 3½ years at the front and then married my grandmother. Coming back from that war, he was looking for employment. He was an accountant before he left, but unfortunately it was a very difficult time for Irish people and particularly Irish Catholics in South Australia, and they were discriminated against. On the doors of employers where jobs were available there were signs saying, 'Catholics need not apply.'

I thought we'd seen the end of discrimination, bigotry and sectarianism in South Australia, but I've been very surprised by the comments of Senator Birmingham in the last couple of days referring to statements by the Catholic Education Commission of Victoria in support of the Labor Party as being 'bought by a few pieces of silver'. I think he means 30 pieces of silver, but he said 'a few pieces of silver'. I don't believe Senator Birmingham is a bigot or sectarian or seeks to discriminate against Catholics, but it's very easy to interpret his comments in that way, and I think most Catholics would see those comments of Senator Birmingham in that light.

There is an opportunity, I think, for Senator Birmingham to correct the record. There's an opportunity for him to now say, 'Yes, I realise these sorts of comments are inappropriate.' They're not the way in which a federal minister in this government should be referring to members of the Victorian Catholic education office. There's now an opportunity for Senator Birmingham to withdraw those comments. I'd strongly urge Senator Birmingham to take the opportunity now to come into this place, come into this chamber and say 'Yes, my comments were inappropriate.' A week and a half out from Easter, this is not the way he should be making references to members of the Victorian Catholic education office. I'd very strongly urge Senator Birmingham to take the opportunity now, before this issue starts to steamroll and get worse and we find ourselves in a situation where we're back to the bad old days in terms of sectarianism in this country and this state, to withdraw. (Time expired)