Tim Wilson (Goldstein, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Small Business) Share this | Hansard source

I am proud to stand up and speak on this Defence Amendment (Parliamentary Joint Committee on Defence) Bill 2025. I want to start by acknowledging the previous speaker and the speaker before them, who was speaking on a different matter. Because when we are talking about the defence of our country we are talking about a social contract. We are talking about how we keep our country united, about how we keep our country focused and about how we lean into the future to make sure every Australian feels a sense of investment about the future of our nation, an equal sense of confidence about who we are as a people and that everyone feels an equal share of responsibility in whatever capacity it is to be able to stand up for the future of our country.

Whether we're talking about Racial Discrimination Act or any other piece of legislation, or of course in the context of the Defence Amendment (Parliamentary Joint Committee on Defence) Bill 2025, we're talking how do we enliven that sense of responsibility for every Australian. One of the principles that sits behind a lot of the legislation like the Racial Discrimination Act is making sure all citizens are equal. All people should be treated equally before the law. This is one of the most fundamental principles that I believe in, not just as a Liberal but as an Australian. I fundamentally believe that nobody should get any legal privileges or rights based on their ethnicity, their racial background, their sexuality, their gender or anything else. All Australians are equal. Let's start with that proposition: all Australians are equal. I will never retreat from that position. I am proud stand for that; it is very important. When we have laws that give some people some coverage and the same is not extended to others, I will always have an issue. There is no protection like 18C in the Racial Discrimination Act that extend to the context—

See this speech in context