Commission of Inquiry into Antisemitism at Australian Universities Bill 2024 (No. 2)

Senator GREEN (Queensland) (10:00): I have a lot of prepared notes here, and I chaired the inquiry into the Commission of Inquiry into Antisemitism at Australian Universities Bill 2024 (No. 2), and I want to go to some of the evidence that we received during that inquiry and the final conclusions of the committee. I'll do that if time allows in this debate. But, just before I do go to that, I was very distressed to see a senator from the Liberal Party accuse the Prime Minister of avoiding this debate by going to North Queensland today.

I just want to say on the record that that is an awful thing to say, given that two people have died in the North Queensland floods and we still have communities that are cut off. There are communities that require an enormous amount of effort from all levels of government, and that is why the Prime Minister is there on the ground today. To accuse the Prime Minister of avoiding the debate by going to the aid of communities in need in North Queensland is disgraceful, reckless and arrogant.

I wasn't here for the debate. I hope that those comments are eventually withdrawn, but it really shows me and says to me that there are people in this place who are seeking to politicise the events that are happening around this country and seeking to politicise this debate in a way that will not help to assist the tensions in our community and that will not end this type of conflict in our community.

What our community does not want right now is more conflict and more division, and comments like that from Senator Hughes, from the Liberal Party, do not assist in bringing down the temperature of this debate. That is exactly what the Albanese Labor government have sought to do, and we want to ensure that all Australians have a right to be safe in their homes, communities, educational institutions and workplaces and online.

That is why we have been working and making sure that we are taking every action that we can to make sure that people in the community understand that there is no place for antisemitism, Islamophobia or any kind of racism or vilification or hate speech, whether it is in our universities, outside our electorate offices or anywhere else. We urge communities in Australia to remain respectful, and we strongly condemn anyone who incites violence or hatred within our community.

All Australians have a right to feel safe. We don't want to turn distress into anger and hate that divides us. It is very important, in a debate like this, to come back to the words of the director-general of ASIO, who made it clear.

He said: … it is important that all parties consider the implications for social cohesion when making public statements. As I said, I chaired the inquiry into this bill, and we received an enormous amount of evidence, and I'm so grateful and thankful to the communities that came forward and gave evidence. The committee was very moved by the evidence given, particularly by students on campuses.

The committee found that it is clear that the university responses to incidents of antisemitism and to the fears of Jewish students and staff have been woefully inadequate: The committee considers that the universities' responses to this issue are remarkably similar to their historically poor responses to sexual assault and harassment. Now, the committee also found, though, that the bill itself is not the appropriate mechanism for addressing this type of issue: The committee is concerned that a commission of inquiry would be too slow.

As the committee heard from the Attorney-General's Department, the shortest Commonwealth royal commission in recent years was eight months in duration. And what our communities are calling for right now is swift action—and for social cohesion: The committee considers that actions that produce results more quickly and are more agile and responsive to the situation on the ground are required.

To that end, the committee asks all Australian universities to respond with urgency to the issues raised … And the committee recommended that the Attorney-General immediately refer an inquiry into antisemitism at Australian universities to the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights, and that was done. That is exactly the action that our government took.

We referred it to that committee. That committee has already started its work. That committee has already started its hearings.

That committee is receiving submissions and is getting its work underway. This bill is all about politics. It's not about solutions on the ground or taking action.

It's not about getting things done. It is not about addressing the conflict in our community or setting the standard by which we wish our community members to behave. It is not about ensuring that we can set the standards that we want our community to behave by.

And it is not about ensuring that we set the standards for our community that make sure people are safe, that there is clear information for people about the things that they are seeing on universities. We are making sure that there is an inquiry— Senator Henderson: Why doesn't the minister— Senator GREEN: This is the tone of the debate. I can't stand here and speak respectfully without being interrupted by those opposite.

I can't stand here and not be yelled at by those from the Liberal and National parties about this issue. The ACTING DEPUTY PRESIDENT ( Senator Allman-Payne ): Senator Green, resume your seat. I have asked Senator Green to resume her seat to remind the chamber that interjections are disorderly.

There is no point of order in relation to anything that Senator Green has said. Senator Green, can I ask you to direct your comments through the chair. Senator GREEN: Chair, I intend to do that.

The ACTING DEPUTY PRESIDENT: Senator Green, please resume your seat. Senator Henderson? Senator Henderson: A point of order on reflection on a senator— The ACTING DEPUTY PRESIDENT: The senator has not reflected on anyone.

Senator Henderson: There was no yelling by me, and I would ask for— The ACTING DEPUTY PRESIDENT: No, she hasn't. Senator Henderson: the record to be corrected. The ACTING DEPUTY PRESIDENT: There's no point of order.

Senator Green. Senator GREEN: Our government, since the October 7 attacks on Israel, has consulted widely and across communities. We have consulted across the Palestinian, Muslim and Arab communities.

We have consulted widely with the Jewish community, and the measures to address community needs identified closely by community members after the attacks are designed to address the short-term as well as the long-term impacts felt across communities in Australia. Our approach supports both short- and long-term impacts of the conflict, enables funding to be distributed rapidly to communities most in need while also building capacity in affected communities.

Our priority is to provide support to those communities that have been impacted, and to enhance and foster community connection during these challenging times. That is the priority of our government—taking action, supporting communities and delivering the funding that is needed. I want to be clear in the final moments that I have that the Australian government has a zero-tolerance approach towards violence and expects all students to act respectfully towards each other.

Antisemitism, Islamophobia and any other form of harassment, racism, discrimination or intimidation must not be allowed to threaten the safety of students and staff in Australian university campuses or anywhere else. Any incidents on university campuses that contravene the law should immediately be reported to police. Universities must uphold their obligations under the Higher Education Support Act 2003 and the Higher Education Standards Framework (Threshold Standards) 2021.

This includes having policies in place around freedom of speech, fostering a safe environment and ensuring the wellbeing of students and staff. It also includes having effective grievance processes to enable complaints to be made without fear of reprisal. Our committee heard so many times about the universities not being able to deal with complaints or respond to complaints in an agile way.

That was the evidence in our committee. But our government is working to strengthen the student ombudsman—we passed a bill last year—to make sure that students do have someone to go to when they need assistance. There will always be a place for peaceful protest, but it must be peaceful.

There will always be a place for respectful debate, but it must be respectful. Upholding freedom of speech does not extend to protecting or tolerating discriminatory or hate speech, including antisemitism or Islamophobia. With the final moments I have, I intend to go through some of the work that our government is doing.

A bill like this is about an inquiry that will take some time. Our government is delivering on the ground right now. The government has developed a social cohesion package, which includes $25 million to the Executive Council of Australian Jewry to immediately improve safety.

I have spoken to the Jewish community in my community in Far North Queensland, and they are very appreciative of these efforts. We are also making sure that we are providing funding for a series of measures to support the Australian community—$3 million for targeted mental health supports, $6 million for mental health and wellbeing support to students in Jewish and Islamic schools and for students of Jewish and Islamic faith— The ACTING DEPUTY PRESIDENT: The time for this debate has expired.