Lisa Singh (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the minister representing the Prime Minister, Minister Cormann. When asked whether religious schools should be able to discriminate against LGBTIQ students and teachers, Minister Hawke said: 'Absolutely, absolutely. I don't think it's controversial.' Does Minister Hawke's statement reflect the government's position?

Mathias Cormann (WA, Liberal Party, Vice-President of the Executive Council) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

No, and subsequent statements issued by the Prime Minister and others have made that very clear.

Scott Ryan (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Singh, a supplementary question.

Lisa Singh (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

When asked about the ability for religious schools to discriminate against LGBTI students and teachers last Wednesday, Prime Minister Morrison said:

We're not proposing to change that law to take away that existing arrangement …

Does the Prime Minister's statement reflect the government's position?

Mathias Cormann (WA, Liberal Party, Vice-President of the Executive Council) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

RMANN (—) (): Firstly, what the Prime Minister was pointing out was that the potential discrimination against students that many people have expressed concern about is currently enshrined in current legislation which was put through the parliament by the former Labor government. That is a matter of historical fact. Indeed, the explanatory memorandum to the bill circulated by the then Attorney-General and now shadow Attorney-General, Mark Dreyfus, in 2013 stated among other things that:

… otherwise discriminatory conduct on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity will not be prohibited for educational institutions established for religious purpose.

That was in 2013. That's the law that you passed. Senator Singh, were you here in 2013? That's the law that you passed. The truth, of course, is that the Prime Minister, on behalf of the government— (Time expired)

Scott Ryan (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Singh, a final supplementary question.

Lisa Singh (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Three days after declaring that the government was not proposing to change laws allowing discrimination against LGBTIQ students, Prime Minister Morrison accepted Labor's offer to work to remove the outdated laws. When did the Prime Minister first tell Minister Hawke that his view no longer reflected the government's position?

Mathias Cormann (WA, Liberal Party, Vice-President of the Executive Council) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

As I indicated to the chamber yesterday, our government does not support expulsion of students from religious non-state schools on the basis of their sexuality. This view is widely shared by religious schools and communities across the country, and the Prime Minister's statement on Saturday to that effect is self-explanatory.