This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/live/2017/feb/28/essential-poll-malcolm-turnbull-intelligent-hardworking-out-of-touch-politics-live
The article has changed 18 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 14 | Version 15 |
|---|---|
| Report on free speech recommends fixing Racial Discrimination Act complaints process – politics live | |
| (30 minutes later) | |
| 6.21am GMT | |
| 06:21 | |
| The Racial Discrimination Act says in part: | |
| It is unlawful for a person to do an act, otherwise than in private, if: | |
| (a) the act is reasonably likely, in all the circumstances, to offend, insult, humiliate or intimidate another person or a group of people; and | |
| (b) the act is done because of the race, colour or national or ethnic origin of the other person or of some or all of the people in the group. | |
| But also, | |
| Section 18C does not render unlawful anything said or done reasonably and in good faith: | |
| (a) in the performance, exhibition or distribution of an artistic work; or | |
| (b) in the course of any statement, publication, discussion or debate made or held for any genuine academic, artistic or scientific purpose or any other genuine purpose in the public interest; or | |
| (c) in making or publishing: | |
| (i) a fair and accurate report of any event or matter of public interest; or | |
| (ii) a fair comment on any event or matter of public interest if the comment is an expression of a genuine belief held by the person making the comment. | |
| 6.17am GMT | |
| 06:17 | |
| Chair Ian Goodenough said there was no consensus on the committee so they thought they would provide the government with a range of options. | |
| Asked about his personal view, Goodenough says he believes the government should consider raising the standard above “offend” and “insult”. | |
| 6.14am GMT | |
| 06:14 | |
| Here is an example of one of the recommendations in the bipartisan report - as flagged by Katharine Murphy one day ago. | |
| The range of proposals that had the support of at least one member of the committee included: | |
| (a) no change to sections 18C or 18D; | |
| (b) amending Part IIA of the Racial Discrimination Act 1975 to address rule of law concerns and to ensure that the effect of Part IIA is clear and accessible on its face, by codifying the judicial interpretation of the section along the lines of the test applied by Kiefel J in Creek v Cairns Post Pty Ltd that section 18C refers to ‘profound and serious effects not to be likened to mere slights’; | |
| (c) removing the words ‘offend’, ‘insult’ and ‘humiliate’ from section 18C and replacing them with ‘harass’; | |
| (d) amending section 18D to also include a ‘truth’ defence similar to that of defamation law alongside the existing 18D exemptions; | |
| (e) changing the objective test from ‘reasonable member of the relevant group’ to ‘the reasonable member of the Australian community’; and x | |
| (f) criminal provisions on incitement to racially motivated violence be further investigated on the basis that such laws have proved ineffective at the State and Commonwealth level in bringing successful prosecutions against those seeking to incite violence against a person on the basis of their race. | |
| 6.10am GMT | |
| 06:10 | |
| The 18c report has landed on the website. | |
| Here is the takeout from it. | |
| There are 22 recommendations. | |
| But, there are no defining recommendations. Most of them relate to procedural changes to improve the process for dealing with complaints, including time limits. | |
| Essentially, this issue had been flicked to the joint parliamentary committee on human rights by Malcolm Turnbull. The committee has flicked it back to the leadership. | |
| Julian Leeser, who took over Philip Ruddock’s seat of Berowra, says the committee took much evidence and there was a range of views. | |
| All of them told us that the process was the punishment, says Leeser on Sky. | |
| This means the bottom line is the freedom warriors – including Tony Abbott – get no clear path to removing offend and insult from the Racial Discrimination Act. | |
| Updated | |
| at 6.21am GMT | |
| 5.42am GMT | 5.42am GMT |
| 05:42 | 05:42 |
| Give me a break. | Give me a break. |
| As much as we would have loved to be there to grill Board on #auspost salaries, Australians have us working on more important issues today https://t.co/FhgD63eQ6U | As much as we would have loved to be there to grill Board on #auspost salaries, Australians have us working on more important issues today https://t.co/FhgD63eQ6U |
| *live blogger falls off chair* | *live blogger falls off chair* |
| 5.41am GMT | 5.41am GMT |
| 05:41 | 05:41 |
| Given Ian Goodenough is still giving his preamble, Leeser also said: | Given Ian Goodenough is still giving his preamble, Leeser also said: |
| These reforms will return section 18C to its intended function as an important but limited protection against the worst kind of racial hate speech. They will also put important limitations on the types of complaints that are pursued and provide more oversight of the Human Rights Commission. | These reforms will return section 18C to its intended function as an important but limited protection against the worst kind of racial hate speech. They will also put important limitations on the types of complaints that are pursued and provide more oversight of the Human Rights Commission. |
| Section 18C plays an important role in our multicultural society. However, it was always intended as a limited protection, to be used only in serious cases. The way the law is currently being administered allows too many nuisance complaints. The threshold for making a complaint is so low as to be virtually redundant. These reforms will see that complaints with no prospect of success, such as those made against the QUT students and Bill Leak, thrown out. | Section 18C plays an important role in our multicultural society. However, it was always intended as a limited protection, to be used only in serious cases. The way the law is currently being administered allows too many nuisance complaints. The threshold for making a complaint is so low as to be virtually redundant. These reforms will see that complaints with no prospect of success, such as those made against the QUT students and Bill Leak, thrown out. |
| 5.38am GMT | 5.38am GMT |
| 05:38 | 05:38 |
| Fellow Liberal committee member Julian Leeser has beat the chair to put out a statement. | Fellow Liberal committee member Julian Leeser has beat the chair to put out a statement. |
| From Leeser: | From Leeser: |
| The report makes several recommendations to fix the complaints handling process related to section 18C of the Racial Discrimination Act. These include: | The report makes several recommendations to fix the complaints handling process related to section 18C of the Racial Discrimination Act. These include: |
| · providing greater assistance to respondents to match what is currently afforded to complainants; | · providing greater assistance to respondents to match what is currently afforded to complainants; |
| · imposing time limits on notifying respondents and on the complaints handling processes more generally; | · imposing time limits on notifying respondents and on the complaints handling processes more generally; |
| · ensuring section 18D defences are considered by the commission in assessing complaints; | · ensuring section 18D defences are considered by the commission in assessing complaints; |
| · giving the commission greater powers to terminate complaints earlier in the process; | · giving the commission greater powers to terminate complaints earlier in the process; |
| · restricting access to the courts following the commission’s termination of a complaint; | · restricting access to the courts following the commission’s termination of a complaint; |
| · providing penalties for legal practitioners instituting complaints that have no reasonable prospects of success; and | · providing penalties for legal practitioners instituting complaints that have no reasonable prospects of success; and |
| · providing more parliamentary oversight to the commission. | · providing more parliamentary oversight to the commission. |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 5.44am GMT | at 5.44am GMT |
| 5.35am GMT | 5.35am GMT |
| 05:35 | 05:35 |
| Liberal chair of the Racial Discrimination Act 18C inquiry, Ian Goodenough, is presenting the report to the parliament. | Liberal chair of the Racial Discrimination Act 18C inquiry, Ian Goodenough, is presenting the report to the parliament. |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 5.39am GMT | at 5.39am GMT |
| 5.27am GMT | 5.27am GMT |
| 05:27 | 05:27 |
| 5.25am GMT | 5.25am GMT |
| 05:25 | 05:25 |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 5.30am GMT | at 5.30am GMT |