Parliament

The Hunter Valley needs a new coal-fired power station like it needs a hole in the head. I have spent a lot of time in the Hunter Valley, and the people there know that coal has no future. They know how damaging coal is for the climate. They know how harmful coaldust is for them, their families and their children. They know that there is no future in coal, that it is a collapsing industry. The irrational exuberance of Pauline Hanson's One Nation and the coalition to keep pushing coal is criminal.

The Greens support this motion. We have long called for federal laws on industrial manslaughter. Our workplace health and safety laws are broken. Employers who do not ensure their workplaces are safe must be held to account and there must be strong deterrents for cutting corners on safety. Action on the recommendations of the reports on industrial deaths should have already been implemented. The government has clearly deprioritised this. The families and loved ones of hundreds of people who have died at work since 2018 deserve to see justice.

I rise to speak on the Fair Work (Registered Organisations) Amendment (Withdrawal from Amalgamations) Bill 2020. This bill facilitates the expedited splitting up of amalgamated unions. Not only are the government expediting the splitting up of amalgamated unions; they're also expediting this bill through parliament.

This was a terrorist attack committed by an Australian man who, the report says, was driven by an extreme right-wing Islamophobic ideology. Any denial or obfuscation of this simple fact is an insult to the targets.

Senator FARUQI (New South Wales) (14:41): My question without notice is to the Minister representing the Prime Minister, Senator Birmingham. Yesterday the report of Aotearoa New Zealand's Royal Commission of Inquiry into the terrorist attack on Christchurch masjidain was released. This report makes for highly disturbing reading. It details how an Australian man was radicalised and came to commit this horrific terrorist attack.

Senator FARUQI (New South Wales) (12:14): I rise to speak on the Social Security (Administration) Amendment (Continuation of Cashless Welfare) Bill 2020. The Greens strongly oppose this bill. The Greens and I completely reject Senator Hanson's disgraceful contribution to the debate on this bill. Referring to and bringing in a family member of Senator Thorpe's in her speech is a new low for Senator Hanson. If Senator Hanson had a skerrick—

I rise to speak to this matter of urgency. What happened in Afghanistan was the murder and torture of innocent people, even children, which left families torn apart and communities in ruin. These heinous war crimes committed by Australia are another shameful chapter in our history. We demand justice for the victims.

Government senators interjecting—

Universities are cutting courses and slashing jobs. The combined blows of COVID-19 and funding cuts are devastating. We should prioritise and expand education in languages and cultures, especially those in the Asia-Pacific, and reject these harsh, nonsensical cuts to language programs.

In its submission to the job-ready graduates bill inquiry, the Languages and Cultures Network for Australian Universities said:

I'd like to inform the chamber that Senator McKim will be co-sponsoring this motion with me. I, and also on behalf of Senator McKim, move:

That the Senate—

(a) notes that:

(i) 2020 has been an incredibly tough year for temporary visa holders in Australia, including migrant workers and international students,

(ii) according to the Migrant Worker Justice Initiative, 70% of temporary visa holders lost their jobs or most of their hours after the pandemic hit in March,

The Greens support this motion. What Senator Abetz did was disgraceful. There is no doubt about that. Interrogating a person's loyalty to this country because of their cultural background is unacceptable. It's just as disgraceful that Senator Abetz has dug his heels in and refuses to engage in self-reflection. It's even more disgraceful that not one single minister of this government has condemned Senator Abetz for his racist targeting of Chinese Australians.