Attorney General claims religious freedom bill won’t override state LGBTQI laws

Attorney General claims religious freedom bill won’t override state LGBTQI laws
Image: Equality Tasmania spokesperson Rodney Croome. Image: file photo.

Attorney General Christian Porter has sought to play down fears that the government’s planned religious discrimination bill will water down or remove existing anti-discrimination protections for LGBTQI people at state and territory levels.

Porter told Guardian Australia earlier today that the bill “is not intended to displace state law nor will it import specific provisions of international law”
 
Equality advocates have welcomed that commitment but are still concerned that the bill will impinge on LGBTQI people and want to see what the government is drafting.
 
“Tasmania has the strongest discrimination and hate speech protections for LGBTI people in the nation, and we are concerned federal legislation could water down these protections in the name of religious freedom,” Equality Tasmania spokesperson Rodney Croome said.
 
“We welcome Mr Porter’s commitment, but we still fear the devil will be in the detail.”
 
“For example, the Government has flagged religious freedom amendments to marriage and charity law that could allow religious organisations to discriminate in ways that are currently not allowed in Tasmania.”
 
“This would impact not only LGBTI people, but also single parents, divorcees, de facto partners, people with disabilities, and anyone who falls foul of traditional religious precepts.”
 
“We want Scott Morrison and Anthony Albanese to give an iron-clad commitment that strong state and territory discrimination protections, like those in Tasmania, will not be watered down under any new federal religious discrimination and freedom law.”
 
According to Guardian Australia, Tasmanian Shadow Attorney-General Ella Haddad has written to her federal Labor colleagues to seek a commitment to ensuring Tasmania’s anti-discrimination laws are not affected by any federal legislation.
 
The only state or territory to do so, Tasmanian does not allow religious organisations, including schools, hospitals and welfare agencies, to discriminate on the grounds of sexual orientation, gender identity, relationship status or marital status, and there have been fears that the Federal Government is seeking to undermine this or prevent it from becoming a legal norm in other parts of the country.
 
Tasmanian hate speech laws prohibit incitement to hatred and offensive language, including if it is in the name of religion.

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One response to “Attorney General claims religious freedom bill won’t override state LGBTQI laws”

  1. The government is working out that this religious freedom bizzo is not worth it. They’ll undoubtedly come up with something fairly meaningless rather than back away entirely but the right-wing Institute of Public Affairs has come out strongly against this bill. They say less laws not more give the most freedoms.

    I predicted on these pages a couple of weeks ago in a comment on another article that Christians may yet work out they have more to lose than win from this sort of bill, it’s exactly what happened at state level in SA nearly 20 years ago. Christians love to talk trash about other Christians and other religions, they love to discriminate on religious grounds, they liked the sound of this bill but they’re working out they won’t like the impacts it has on them.

    And Folau won’t care, he’ll just play the victim card again and again and again, it’s working very well for him.