Tuesday 20 October 2020

Australian Greens Disability spokesperson Senator Jordon Steele-John said today it was unacceptable that the Attorney General would not introduce privacy protections to the Disability Royal Commission, garuanteeing witnesses confidentiality beyond the life of the Commission, until mid-next year.

The Government’s latest attempt to expand ASIO’s powers is cynical and unjustified, the Greens say.

“Yet again, Peter Dutton is trying to increase powers of security agencies without even trying to explain his reasons,” Greens Justice spokesperson Senator Nick McKim said.

“Nor has he tried to give any possible justification for the need to interrogate children as young as 14.”

“To use the pandemic as cover for the increased scope of the surveillance state is dangerous and cynical.”

Greens MPs have used the Federal Parliament to demand justice for Julian Assange, as his extradition hearing begins in London.

In the House of Representatives today, Greens Leader Adam Bandt has called for Mr Assange to be brought back to Australia, while in the Senate, Senator Peter Whish-Wilson today questioned the government and yesterday moved a motion urging the Parliament not to be silent on the criminalisation of journalistic activity.

Quotes attributable to Greens Leader Adam Bandt MP:

I rise this morning to note this government's disturbing and frankly despicable attempts to avoid transparency and to shirk accountability. Trust amongst people in our democracy is at the lowest it has ever been. Democratic satisfaction has actually plummeted in the last decade from 86 per cent in 2007 to just 40 per cent in 2018. I can bet that if we asked the community right now how much they trust democracy in Australia, it would be in freefall thanks to this Liberal-National government.

I move:

That there be laid on the table by the Minister representing the Minister for Health, by 12 pm on 11 February 2020, any emails or any other form of written correspondence between the former Minister, Senator McKenzie, or the former Minister's office, in any of her former capacities, and the Department of Health, or any person working for the Department of Health, concerning either of the following matters surrounding the report 'Economic and social impacts of recreational hunting and shooting', released in September 2019:

(a) the funding of the report; or

The second exposure draft of the Liberals' Religious Discrimination legislation has made already bad legislation even worse.

"The Liberals have massively widened the scope of the legislation, which will increase the number of organisations that will be able to discriminate," Greens Justice spokesperson Senator Nick McKim said.

"The legislation maintains its undermining of state-based protections against discrimination, including Tasmania's nation-leading laws."

"This whole process has always been a smokescreen for bigotry."

The Greens urge the Government to use the parliamentary break to amend the serious problems in the proposed religious discrimination laws.

"This is a chance for the Prime Minister to fix the obvious flaws in the Bill which allow for harmful discrimination," Greens Justice spokesperson Nick McKim said.

"But it's no secret that some church groups want to be allowed to discriminate even more than they were already being offered."

Greens Senators have reacted to the passage of the Government’s anti-protest ag gag legislation which passed the Senate with Labor support.

Senator Mehreen Faruqi, Greens Animal Welfare Spokesperson, said:

“This bill is an absolute fraud. It’s nothing more than ag gag legislation aimed at protecting big agribusiness from scrutiny at the cost of animal welfare and the community’s right to know and protest.

“The Greens are proud to oppose laws aimed at stamping out protest and jailing activists and whistleblowers.”

The Greens responded to the AFP raid on the home of an Australian Signals Directorate intelligence officer today:

Greens Spokesperson for Media and Communications and Chair of the Senate Inquiry into Press Freedoms and Whistleblower Protections Senator Sarah Hanson-Young said:

“Today’s raid by the AFP on an intelligence officer is very concerning. The intimidation of truth tellers by this government is alarming.

“Journalism and the protection of whistleblowers are essential pillars of democracy.

Freedom of press and freedom to protest are fundamental tenets of our democracy. But they are being increasingly trampled on and squeezed by this government. If Senator Stoker is actually interested in facts, these are the facts that you should be really concerned about: that our democratic rights are being trampled on by your government.