Larissa Waters (Queensland, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister representing the Prime Minister, Senator Birmingham. A hundred thousand people marched for justice today around the country, calling for an end to gendered violence and for equality, safety and respect. Brittany Higgins, Rachelle Miller, many survivors and powerful women of colour were speakers there. Myself, our other female senators and our Greens leader were there. Many of our staff attended. Many of the Labor MPs, their leader and their staff attended as well. Virtually no Liberal MPs attended the march.

Government Senators:

Government senators interjecting—

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

Order! Sorry, Senator Waters, I'll give you—

Government senators interjecting—

Order on my right! Order! Senator Waters, I'd ask you to commence again midway through the question. I got up to where you said 'staff attended'.

Larissa Waters (Queensland, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you, Mr President.

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

I ask for silence.

Larissa Waters (Queensland, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Virtually no Liberal MPs attended. I commend those who did, but the Minister for Women wasn't there and the Prime Minister wasn't there. Despite many people travelling a long way to be there, the Prime Minister wanted women to come even further and have a closed-door meeting with him. He couldn't find 10 minutes to go and meet with them. One of the asks of the petition which I will seek leave to table, signed by 70,000 people, is for action to implement the 55 recommendations of the 'respect@work' inquiry. My question is: when will we see action to implement those recommendations? I seek leave to table this 70,000-strong petition calling for that and other things.

Leave granted.

Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Waters for her question and, indeed, I do acknowledge those who have rallied in Canberra and elsewhere around the country today. I acknowledge the many important messages that were conveyed in the remarks made by various people speaking at those different rallies and events. As Senator Payne has already reinforced to the chamber, the Prime Minister invited—and the invitation continues to stand—representatives of those who organised and conducted the rallies to come and meet with him and with any other senior members of the government, as they wish. Indeed, that is consistent with many such protest rallies or other events that have taken place over the years and the work and the offers that have been made on those occasions and accepted by event organisers and activists, or others, on those occasions. I would encourage the organisers of this event to reconsider their refusal to accept the Prime Minister's invitation and to have those meetings.

In relation to the recommendations and calls for action in the petition that Senator Waters has just tabled: there are a number of those on which work is underway. I thank all senators, including Senator Waters, who cooperated with me and the government in establishing the multiparty independent review into workplace practices. That was an important action to get underway and it is one of those actions called for in the petition. In relation to the Respect@work report: the government is acting on a number of those recommendations already. That includes committing $2.1 million in the 2020-21 budget to implement recommendations related to the establishment of the Respect@Work Council—

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

Order, Senator Birmingham, the time for your answer has expired. Senator Waters, a supplementary question?

Larissa Waters (Queensland, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Prime Minister's ministerial standards require ministers to act with integrity, accountability and in the public interest. The Prime Minister can call for an independent investigation into whether ministers meet those standards. Far from being a breach of the rule of law, this investigation is commonplace. It happened in the High Court and it happens across the private sector. It does not replace police investigations; it is a separate question as to whether the Attorney-General is suitable to hold the position of the highest law officer in the land. When will the Prime Minister order an independent inquiry into Minister Porter's fitness to be Attorney-General?

Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I do note that the analogy is drawn, as it was by Senator Waters, and often by others, between the investigation that the High Court undertook in relation to former Justice Dyson Heydon and these other matters. Indeed, the matters that the High Court investigated, as many other entities do, relate to workplace harassment matters and allegations of what occurred in that particular workplace.

There is a significant difference in relation to the type of investigation you would expect conducted on those matters compared with criminal law allegations that date back a considerable period of time. The right and appropriate way for criminal law allegations to be investigated in this country is through the appropriate legal channels. The government absolutely stands by and supports all of those independent law enforcement agencies to do their jobs.

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

Senator Waters, a final supplementary question.

Larissa Waters (Queensland, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On a day when women are asking to be heard, Minister Porter is suing the female journalist and the ABC. That sends a message about silencing women. If this is designed to alleviate pressure for an internal inquiry, it won't work. Did the Prime Minister ask Minister Porter to launch the defamation action, and was it so that the government could try to brush aside further questions by claiming this matter is before the courts?

Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

In relation to whether the Prime Minister requested any such action, I'm confident that the answer to that is no. In relation to the action that Mr Porter has initiated: as I have said publicly previously, all Australians are treated equally before the law. That includes the rights of all Australians not to be defamed and, if they believe they have been defamed, to take action in relation to those matters. That's what Mr Porter is doing.