Anthony Chisholm (Queensland, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I, too, want to support the words of Senator Dastyari. I know that when we got to the task of taking note today we were intending to focus on the first question that was asked of Senator Scullion, around power. But, obviously, some events have overtaken that, and I think they are of a serious nature. I acknowledge the comments from the Liberals, those who have so far made a contribution in this debate, and I also acknowledge the words of Senator Brandis in response to Senator Hanson's question.

I think one of the important things for me in talking about this is looking at the issue of national security. I think Senator Brandis did a good job here in response to Senator Hanson, and it is something that I also spoke about in my first speech. There is a level of bipartisanship amongst the government and opposition when it comes to dealing with issues of national security. I think the reason for that is that there are serious threats. The government takes them seriously and, indeed, as those who aspire to government the opposition does as well. Probably the most disappointing thing about what we saw today is that Senator Hanson was willing to use a stunt that would be so offensive to the Islamic or Muslim population to try to make a cheap political point around national security. There is no place or time for that to happen about something as serious as that.

I know there are a number of our armed forces serving overseas. There is no way that they are going to benefit from what we saw today in the stunt from Senator Pauline Hanson. It is not going to add to their security and it is not going to do anything for the security concerns that Australians legitimately have, given how we have been targeted so far.

I think Senator Hanson and Senator Fawcett touched on this in terms of not attacking the person. I don't think anyone has done that deliberately. But we also need to ensure that there is a strong response from the government and the opposition so that the people of Australia understand where the major parties are going to land on such an important topic as this, and the way that this chamber is used with regard to important debates such as religious freedom and national security. It is important that the Australian people see that this parliament takes those seriously.

From time to time, there will be differences of opinion from the major parties on this, but we always have those debates in a serious way, and I know that there are levels of briefing that the government and opposition are often aware of that the community aren't at the same time. The public put a lot of faith in members of parliament to ensure that they take those responsibilities around civil liberties, protecting freedoms and also getting security settings right. It would be a shame if that overwhelming consensus from the community is undermined by cheap political stunts that we saw from Senator Hanson today. In closing, I thank Senator Brandis for his comments in response and I echo the thoughts of Senator Dastyari as the first senator taking note from the Labor team.

Question agreed to.