Susan McDonald (Queensland, National Party) Share this | Hansard source

Something that can never be taken for granted is the right to work in a safe environment, whether that be on a building site, on a cattle station or even in a parliamentary office. Workplace reform, especially for women, has come a long way, but more needs to be done to ensure that all people, both men and women, feel comfortable and empowered to take action should the worst occur. It is impossible not to sympathise with Brittany Higgins and others who have endured the double blow of being involved in an incident and then not feeling supported by those who could do something about it. Yet I feel deeply uncomfortable. The opposition has raised this issue and pursued this issue. In the way that the opposition has ensured that this has played out, it has ensured that there will be other complainants who will now potentially be considering whether or not they want to be publicly discussed. Brittany's colleagues and managers certainly acted with good intentions, and Brittany herself has acknowledged the support she received, but processes can always be improved, and they will be.

I refer to the Prime Minister's statement today in the first question in the other place, in which he referred to the process that has been put in place and said that this government will review our processes and our culture. He embraced the suggestion from the Leader of the Opposition and thanked him for the suggestion and the spirit in which it was put forward. But, as he said:

… all of us agree that in the important work we all do here, whether it's members of this place, senators in the other place or our staff, we all come here because we want to make a contribution to our country and we should be able to do that in a safe environment for everyone who is here.

He welcomes that suggestion, so the government will continue along the process that the Prime Minister has outlined today. He's keen to get that moving, and we will. But it is important that every party and everyone who is in this place embrace that same process. The Prime Minister has encouraged the Leader of the Opposition to pursue a similar exercise amongst his colleagues, and I think that, as a government, an opposition and a cross bench, we would all do well to review our own cultures and come together to share those notes and ensure that the process is as productive as possible.

The government has already aimed to provide Ms Higgins with agency and aimed to provide support to make decisions in her interest and respect her privacy. The investigations into her experience are underway. I'm confident that the system in place to deal with serious allegations will be improved once a full review is completed, because having a safe, inclusive and supportive workplace is something everyone, not just one political party or one office, should strive for.

Our workplace has many elements that are not unique—a significant amount of travel and time away from home. But what is unique is the number of late nights and weekends that are worked. This is not unique to any side of politics, and I welcome the PM's review and hope that both sides will take advantage of this concept to look deeply into our own cultures. As a previous small business operator I too know of the challenges of managing people, because we are, in all of our glorious, technicolour differences, interesting and challenging, and I know that we all embrace the challenge of ensuring a safe culture and a safe environment for our employees.

Today the Minister for Defence has stood in this place and apologised to Ms Higgins and made a very comprehensive statement. But I do want to note that Brittany's statement concluded with this:

I ask for my privacy to now be respected as I begin to emotionally recover from this difficult period and wish to make no further comment.

I would suggest that we would all be served by allowing the process to proceed and ensure that this does not happen again in this place.

Question agreed to.