Michael Keenan (Stirling, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Justice, Customs and Border Protection) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to speak on the Sex Discrimination Amendment (Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity and Intersex Status) Bill 2013. This is a bill to extend antidiscrimination protection on the grounds of sexual orientation, gender identity and intersex status, as the title of the bill suggests. This bill follows from the government's abandonment of its Human Rights and Anti-Discrimination Bill on 20 March. Its principal effect is to adopt the recommendation of coalition senators, in the minority report of the senate committee which inquired into the bill, that the Sex Discrimination Act should be amended so that it extends to discrimination on the basis of sexuality. It should be noted that this was the policy which the coalition took to the 2010 election, and it remains coalition policy, which the government has now adopted. While the coalition supports the passage of this bill through the House, I wish to note that amendments may be moved in the Senate following the report of the Senate committee. I understand that there are some conversations ongoing between the two parties on this. Obviously, if there are going to be any amendments, they will need to be discussed in the other place.

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