Matt O'Sullivan (WA, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That the Senate take note of the document.

I will just make a couple of brief remarks on the Australian Law Reform Commission report. I read the report over the weekend and, I've got to say, it fundamentally misses the point, which is that people of faith cannot in any way separate their faith from who they actually are. For a person of faith, their activities are not some adjunct to their experiences. They are not just activities that they undertake from time to time. Maybe they're a regular church attendant. Maybe they only celebrate Easter, Christmas, Ramadan or whatever it might be. Their faith is who they are. There's an intrinsic connection to their life. This report fundamentally smacks people's faith in their faces.

I am bitterly disappointed at the way that the ALRC have engaged. They did have an extensive consultation period. They connected with people and received many, many submissions, but they failed to acknowledge the substance of those submissions. I've heard from hundreds of people over the weekend—people of faith, be it Christian, Muslim or Jewish people—who consider their faith to be part of who they are. They are bitterly disappointed that their views have not been fundamentally understood at best but really have been ignored at worst. And I think it's a great shame.

But bigger than that is the fact that the government is refusing to release its response. All that we've really seen from the government so far is that this is a report to government, not from government. We know that there's draft legislation, because our shadow minister has been able to see it, but what about the rest of us? What about the rest of the country? How come they can't see this legislation? And they call that engagement with the opposition, seeking bipartisan support. I've got to say that it is a real low blow to anyone of faith in this country that you won't consider the views of people of faith in this country. This legislation should be out there for all of us to see and should be subject to an inquiry of this Senate so that people, whether they've got faith or not, are able to engage in the process and provide feedback.

The audacity of this Prime Minister to think that they can deal with just a few of us and ram this through the parliament without giving the rest of us—and, indeed, the rest of the country—the opportunity to look at it shows and tells us everything that we need to know about this government. I am ashamed and I am deeply disappointed that this is where we've got to. I call on the Prime Minister to reject the recommendations of this review, to not allow those recommendations to ever see the light of day in this parliament and in this country, but have the guts and release your legislation so we can see what your real agenda is. I seek leave to continue my remarks later.

Paul Scarr (Queensland, Liberal Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Multicultural Engagement) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I congratulate my colleague Senator O'Sullivan for his contribution in relation to this matter. Senator O'Sullivan is absolutely 100 per cent correct. It is unforgivable that the Albanese Labor government has prepared draft legislation in response to the Australian Law Reform Commission report on religious educational institutions and antidiscrimination laws, which is a very important matter of public policy, yet barely anyone in this place has seen it.

We, the representatives of our respective states, don't have an opportunity to see this legislation. Members of the public, those in the public gallery and those across the country, including those who are leaders of our faith based communities, religious institutions and educational institutions—who would be impacted directly by this legislation, or I assume they'd be impacted, though I haven't seen it like my friend Senator O'Sullivan—are not being given the opportunity to see this legislation.

I've got absolute confidence in my colleague Senator Cash, but this legislation should be able to be scrutinised by everyone in this place, not just the shadow minister. Everyone should have access to this legislation, which is so important. It is absolutely crucial. There are core freedoms in this country—freedom of religion, freedom of speech, freedom of association and freedom of conscience. This goes to one of those core freedoms, freedom of religion.

People come to this country from all over the world because of freedom of religion because they're denied freedom of religion in other countries. They come to Australia so they can practice their faith in peace. It is a core freedom in this country, and the draft legislation in response to this report should be in the public domain so that every Australian has the right and the opportunity to review that legislation and provide their feedback to us as their representatives. That's how the system is meant to work. We're meant to have openness and transparency so we can have a debate, so we can engage in freedom of speech and have our views heard. Then, hopefully, through that process, we can come up with the ultimate policy position that has the support of the majority of Australians. That's the way the system is meant to work.

The system is not meant to be conducted on the basis of draft legislation, hidden behind a closed door and behind a non-disclosure agreement. Someone can come in, have a look at it and sign a non-disclosure agreement. They're not allowed to tell anyone else what's in it. That's ridiculous and absurd. I don't know who's advising the Prime Minister in this regard.

The second element which concerns me about this, as Senator O'Sullivan touched upon, is that apparently if the legislation does come forward, there are those on the other side saying: 'There's no need to have another inquiry. We've had enough inquiries.'

Let me tell you, I sat on the Legal and Constitutional Affairs Legislation Committee inquiry into this area of legislation that was brought forth during the last parliament, and there is every reason why an inquiry is needed in relation to this legislation, if it ever comes into the light of day. The previous inquiry, which I was a part of, delivered a 165-page report in relation to that draft legislation. Why? Because it's complicated, the devil is in the detail and so many stakeholders are keenly interested in this legislation. The issue of unintended consequences is abound in relation to these areas.

There needs to be an inquiry, but the first step in any process is for the draft legislation to be made public so the Australians impacted by this draft legislation have an opportunity to read it themselves and provide feedback to their elected representatives. They can't do that if it's hidden behind a cloak of secrecy, behind closed doors and under non-disclosure agreements. I seek leave to continue my remarks later.

Leave granted; debate adjourned.