The Australian Greens say today’s report into workplace culture in NSW Parliament shows that the toxic boys club of politics extends beyond Canberra.

Lines attributable to NSW Senator Mehreen Faruqi, Greens Deputy Leader and member of the Joint Select Committee on Parliamentary Standards:

“The Broderick report is nothing short of traumatic and devastating. Sadly, however, it does not surprise me that this is what has been revealed about my old workplace.

We are in a situation where we have floods in New South Wales and Queensland. We have a housing crisis. People can't make ends meet. Young people are burdened with huge study debts which are holding them back. Rather than addressing these issues that affect millions of people, here we have a government trying to sneak in deductible gift status for the Ramsay Centre for Western Civilisation—a move that will allow the centre to avoid taxation on their income. My amendment will stop this from happening.

Islamophobia in this country is rising. The third report on Islamophobia, Islamophobia in Australia, was released this month by Charles Sturt University and the Islamic Science and Research Academy. This report tells us in no uncertain terms what many Muslims living here already know: that Islamophobia is getting worse. There was a fourfold increase in in-person anti-Muslim hate incidents, and online incidents were 18 times higher after an Australian white supremacist killed 51 innocent people in mosques in Christchurch in 2019. These are just the reported incidents.

On the UN International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (IDERD), The Greens have announced their election plan to build an anti-racist Australia.

With racism on the rise, the Australian government must urgently tackle the root causes of racial hatred, discrimination and white supremacy.

The Greens will:

Australian Greens Anti-racism spokesperson Senator Mehreen Faruqi has said that the latest Islamophobia in Australia report, released today, reveals the horrifying face of Islamophobia and the urgent need for government to tackle anti-Muslim racism and hatred.

Senator Faruqi, who is the only Muslim in the Australian Senate, said:

“Islamophobia in this country is widespread, it is virulent, and it is on the rise.

“In the three years since Christchurch, the federal government has not lifted a finger to tackle Islamophobia and racism in this country.

I rise to speak to the Autonomous Sanctions Amendment (Thematic Sanctions) Bill 2021. I would like to associate myself with the remarks made by my colleague Senator Janet Rice. Senator Rice eloquently expressed the position of the Greens. We support this bill, but Senator Rice will be moving amendments, hopefully, to make this bill stronger.

When Donald Trump was US President, Prime Minister Scott Morrison was, rightly, criticised for his cosy friendship with this white nationalist leader who was impeached twice and tried to steal an election. But not much has been said about the Prime Minister's cosy friendship with another far-Right leader, Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India. Dangerous nationalism and authoritarianism, with strong anti-Muslim and anti-Sikh elements, have skyrocketed in India under Modi, and his administration should be condemned.

Australian Greens Anti-racism spokesperson Senator Mehreen Faruqi has said the findings of the latest Mapping Social Cohesion report, which highlight a substantial increase in Australians’ concerns about racism, should drive government action. 60% of people now say racism is a big problem, up from 40% just last year.

Senator Faruqi said:

“People are more and more worried about rising racism in the community.

I am concerned about the recent attempts by the minister for education to incite a culture war over the draft national curriculum created by the Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority, or ACARA, as they're known. I find his comments on the draft curriculum offensive, pathetic and ahistorical. They should be challenged by everyone who cares about the integrity of our education system.

Just yesterday I stood in this chamber in question time and asked the Leader of the Government in the Senate whether he or the Prime Minister would condemn far-Right extremism. What I got was the usual waffle, the usual sitting on the fence: 'Yes. Sure. We condemn all kinds of extremism.' That is absolute rubbish. That is bullshit. You are putting people's lives in danger. That's what you are doing. And do you know what? This is nothing new. On the weekend, we saw the far-Right extremists on the streets again. They have embedded themselves in antilockdown and antivaccination organising.