Penny Wright (SA, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That the Senate—

(a) notes the Queensland Premier (Mr Newman) has made recent public statements that:

(i) any lawyer acting for a member of a motorcycling gang is part of what he described as a criminal gang machine, and will say and do anything to defend their clients,

(ii) members of the legal community, including the judiciary, are living out of touch with society and do not understand what the community wants from the law, and

(iii) the doctrine of separation of powers between the legislature, the executive and the judiciary is less applicable to Australia than other places;

(b) affirms that these comments do not acknowledge lawyers' professional obligations, including their duty to the court, the integrity of the judiciary or the application of the separation of powers in Australia's parliamentary democracy, and so are incorrect; and

(c) calls on the Commonwealth Attorney-General (Senator Brandis) to acknowledge and uphold the integrity of the legal profession and the judiciary across Australia.

Alan Ferguson (SA, Deputy-President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The question is that the motion moved by Senator Wright be agreed to.

Stephen Parry (Tasmania, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I advise senators that there are a further 11 motions to deal with and I expect there may be divisions occurring through those 11 motions. So, if there are, I will be calling one-minute divisions, in accordance with the standing orders.