Nick Xenophon (SA, Independent) Share this | Hansard source

I move:

That this bill be now read a second time.

I seek leave to have the second reading speech incorporated in Hansard.

Leave granted.

The speech read as follows—

I am pleased to have carriage of the Evidence Amendment (Journalists’ Privilege) Bill 2010 in the Senate, because I believe this Bill is long overdue and will have an extremely positive impact on our democracy and the public’s right to know.

This Bill will amend the Evidence Act 1995 to provide necessary protection for journalists and their sources.

For a long time journalists have been in a position at times when they would be required to provide anonymity for a source, in order to receive information that if broadcast or printed would be in the public interest.

But these agreements, which are standard across the world in many other democracies , posed considerable danger for journalists here in Australia because our laws did not respect a journalists right to protect a source.

If we value democracy we must respect free speech, a free press and the public’s right to know.

This Bill will strengthen our democracy because it starts from the assumption that a journalist and the media organisation he or she works for has a right to protect the identity of a source.

In my first speech in this place way back in 2008 I called for urgent reform in this area.

I specifically mentioned the case in 2004 involving Herald Sun senior political journalists Michael Harvey and Gerard McManus.

These two fine journalists wrote a series of articles about the then Howard Government’s decision to reject a $500 million increase in war veterans entitlements.

This was a legitimate news story that was clearly in the national interest.

And yet, these journalists were charged and convicted of contempt of court for refusing to reveal the source for their stories.

They were fined $7000 and now have criminal convictions on their records.

I have always thought that it was somewhat dubious when Governments of all persuasions call in the Federal Police to chase down the sources of leaks, given how much information the Canberra press gallery gets from all of us, and often on a background only basis.

And so they should get this information because our friends in the gallery perform a unique public service; providing information to Australian citizens.

My staff and I drew up this Bill after considerable discussions with affected parties.

I specifically want to acknowledge the input of journalist Chris Merritt, and John Hartigan and the Right to Know Coalition.

I was delighted for Independent MP Andrew Wilkie to introduce our Bill in the other place as his first Bill, because he too is committed to the protection of whistleblowers. Indeed he has first hand evidence of the need for these types of protections.

This Bill is the right thing to do, and not only that it also shows how, as politicians, we can all get things done if we are willing to work in a nonpartisan fashion.

I believe Bills like this show that Parliament is becoming more about a contest of ideas rather than a clash of personalities.

There’s been a lot of talk about new paradigms, and can I say today, I think we’re soaking in it.

The key element of this Bill is the introduction of a rebuttable presumption in favour of journalist’s privileges.

Under this legislation a court would have to rule that the disclosure of a source was in the public interest before they could compel a journalist to reveal a source.

And the court will have to prove that the public interest in disclosing a source outweighs the public interest in journalists having the right to protect their sources.

It is rightly a tough test and in practice it will mean in the vast majority of cases journalists will not be charged with contempt of court for refusing to reveal their sources.

This Bill isn’t just about journalists or whistleblowers.

It’s for anyone who reads a newspaper, or listens to or watches the news. This will potentially improve the quality of information that every citizen has available to them.

And if you believe in democracy, you have to believe in that.

I commend this Bill to the Senate.