Larissa Waters (Queensland, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That the Senate take note of the answers given to me by Senator Birmingham.

I just want to firstly thank everyone who has spoken today and everyone who took the time to go to the March 4 Justice today right across the country. There were a good 100,000 people—men, women, people of all genders, young people, people of colour, people who held some fabulous signs and people who spoke with such courage, grace and strength. It was a moment that was incredibly uplifting and enraging all at once. So firstly my deep gratitude goes to those who have spoken out on these issues.

But the Prime Minister didn't go along to the rally today. I asked Senator Birmingham, who represents the Prime Minister in this chamber, why on earth not? Some people had come from miles away to be at the march today and the Prime Minister wouldn't even find 10 minutes in his diary to walk out and listen to them. I listened to the speakers. There were many people from other political parties that were there listening as well. There were powerful words. The Prime Minister should have been there. He should have been listening to those speakers and he should listen to women full stop. He didn't do that. I am very disappointed that the Minister for Women was not at the rally today either. It sadly speaks volumes. Once again, I commend the strength of all those who spoke at the march today.

I tabled a petition that 70,000 people had signed. One of the asks of that petition was for some action on a now 14-month-old report that the Sex Discrimination Commissioner prepared and tabled last year about sexual harassment in all workplaces. It's called Respect@work. There are 55 recommendations. My question to the government was: how many of those recommendations are you acting on? At the very end of the time to answer that question, I got a sort of response. Minister Birmingham said, 'A number of those recommendations.' Well, I want all of them acted on. The women of Australia deserve to have all of those recommendations adopted and implemented, and it's not good enough to use a pandemic as an excuse to not progress gender equality. You've progressed an awful lot of other dastardly policies. You've found time to do that, but you haven't found time to keep women safe and you haven't found time to bring in a federal corruption watchdog. You've used the pandemic as an excuse not to do the things you don't want to do—for shame.

I then asked about the Prime Minister's ministerial standards. You wouldn't really know it, but there are meant to be some standards. They're written in a document. They're not actually used, in my view, but they are written down. They say that ministers are meant to act with integrity, accountability and in the public interest, and they even foresee the Prime Minister conducting an independent inquiry when it looks like maybe those standards have not been met. So there is a process that could be used by the Prime Minister to look at whether his minister, Minister Porter, is in fact acting with integrity, accountability and in the public interest. Instead, we get this absolute nonsense from the Prime Minister and some of his other lackeys that it would be against the rule of law to have such an inquiry. Nobody believes that. That is the most ridiculous assertion we've ever heard. An investigation under the Prime Minister's ministerial standards about whether the Attorney-General is a fit person to remain in that role is a separate question to the investigation of the alleged rape by police and other authorities. The two can happen simultaneously, or they could happen, except of course the woman took her own life. We know that, sadly, the justice system is misnamed for so many people who seek justice and are denied it, including Kate.

We've had this nonsense about the rule of law, saying that an independent investigation isn't possible. That didn't stop the High Court. It doesn't stop the private sector. It didn't stop the Law Council. It didn't stop sporting clubs. There is so much precedent for having an independent inquiry. There is specific mention of the ability to do so in the Prime Minister's ministerial standards, but he continues to refuse to uphold those standards. I thought it was terrible timing and another insult to women that Minister Porter chose today to sue Louise Milligan and ABC for running the Four Corners episode which alluded to the fact that he had some serious questions to answer. Today, of all days, when women are hitting the streets asking to be heard and listened to, Minister Porter wants to silence them with a defamation action, which the Prime Minister may or may not have asked for. Minister Birmingham didn't think so, but it wasn't entirely clear. Do better. The women of Australia have had enough. We are sick of this government, we are sick of the patriarchy and we're coming for you.

Question agreed to.