Freedom of Information Amendment Bill 2025
Ms WATSON-BROWN (Ryan) (20:28): I rise to speak against the Freedom of Information Amendment Bill 2025, a fundamental attack on transparency, accountability and the public's right to know. It's disappointing the government is seeking to rush this through when the inquiry into the bill is ongoing until 3 December, treating the parliament and the stakeholders who made submissions on this bill with utter contempt.
This bill doesn't fix our broken FOI system; it'll make it worse in a number of ways. Labor has looked at a broken system and, instead of trying to fix the creeping culture of secrecy in their own ranks, they're going after those trying to access government information. That tells you everything you need to know about this government's contempt for accountability.
When governments hand out billions in fossil fuel subsidies while communities face climate catastrophe, FOI reveals the truth. When corporations dodge taxes while working families struggle, FOI uncovers the cosy relationships between big business and government. And when disasters like robodebt destroy lives it's FOI that brings the truth to light.
Yet this bill does the exact opposite of what the robodebt royal commission called for. It expands cabinet secrecy from 'dominant purpose' to 'substantial purpose', which will hide even more documents from scrutiny. How dare this government invoke robodebt and then introduce legislation that makes another robodebt easier to hide!
The Centre for Public Integrity have done crucial research exposing the flaws in this bill. They've shown how these changes fundamentally undermine the principle that government information belongs to the public, and how it would put more barriers in place to accessing vital information. The Human Rights Law Centre has been equally clear, stating that this bill will make it harder for people to access information about the decisions that affect their lives and communities.
By reinstating application fees and banning anonymous requests, Labor hits the most vulnerable hardest. Journalists will find their work shut down by arbitrary 40-hour caps. Whistleblowers can no longer make anonymous requests about government wrongdoing.
Every single stakeholder opposes this bill—they're not asking for amendments; they're telling us it's too fundamentally broken to fix. The Greens want a FOI system that actually works: faster processing, not arbitrary caps; lower barriers, not reinstated fees; stronger transparency, not expanded exceptions; government information treated as public property, because it is.
It should be accessible to the people it belongs to. Labor must withdraw this bill and listen to stakeholders, the crossbench and Australians telling them that it is wrong. Start again with reforms that actually fix FOI.
I urge all members to oppose this bill. Sitting suspended from 20:32 to 20:35