Foreword

1.1Human rights – the basic rights and freedoms applying to all people regardless of their background or belief, based on principles of dignity, equality and mutual respect. The idea of a ‘fair go’, of a just, fair and egalitarian society, is the idea of human rights. Australians expect that our rights and freedoms will be protected and respected, and on the whole, we can be rightfully proud of our system of democratic governance and vibrant, multicultural society. However, while Australians expect a fair go should be given to all, our laws and practices do not always match these expectations. As the evidence provided to this committee, and numerous previous inquiries, has amply demonstrated, there are significant human rights problems in Australia that must be addressed, from our relationship with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, the protection of privacy in the digital age and the treatment of minority groups, to name just a few.

1.2The Attorney-General has tasked this committee with reviewing the scope and effectiveness of Australia’s 2010 Human Rights Framework and 2012 National Human Rights Action Plan. These commitments were made with the aim of improving and promoting human rights in Australia. However, the Framework was largely abandoned following a change in government, with only those commitments that were legislated still remaining (namely the establishment of this committee and the obligation for statements of compatibility with human rights). By failing to legislate an enforceable requirement for government to consider people’s rights when making decisions, policies or laws, the Framework’s aims, while laudable, were largely ineffective.

1.3We need a comprehensive and effective national human rights framework to tackle some of the difficult challenges facing Australia. Our current piecemeal approach to human rights protection is inadequate to ensure rights and freedoms are properly respected, protected and promoted. We need human rights to be made real in everyday decision-making – not considered, at most, as an afterthought. Numerous royal commissions have shown us what happens when officials, both elected and unelected, fail to properly consider the effect of government action on the rights of vulnerable people.

1.4The 2010 Framework demonstrated that non-legislative approaches to building a culture of respect for human rights do not last. That is why, as overwhelmingly supported by submitters, we need a statutory federal Human Rights Act, as part of a revitalised human rights framework. A statutory model of a Human Rights Act respects parliamentary sovereignty – ensuring our elected representatives can continue to make the laws Parliament deems necessary. But with a Human Rights Act in place, Parliament would need to expressly consider human rights when making laws, and Commonwealth public authorities, including government departments, agencies and the Australian Federal Police, would need to consider rights when making decisions and act compatibly with rights (unless Parliament specifically directs them otherwise). An enhanced human rights framework should also include a sustained commitment to human rights education; requirements for public servants to fully consider rights in the development of legislation and policies; enhancements to parliamentary scrutiny and the role of the Australian Human Rights Commission; review of existing legislation, policies and practices for compliance with rights; and measures to monitor progress on human rights. Of course, a federal Human Rights Act could only apply to federal bodies or those exercising federal functions. It would not directly impact on matters falling within the jurisdiction of the states and territories which is why over time, progress should be made towards all states and territories having their own Human Rights Act to ensure all Australians receive the same protection of rights regardless of residence.

1.5I would like to thank the Attorney-General for referring this timely review to the committee and for giving us the time needed to give this the proper attention it deserves. The substantial work of the Australian Human Rights Commission in this space must be acknowledged – over the past five years the Commission has been working to identify the principles and key elements that would make up an effective system of human rights protection in Australia. The Commission’s proposal for a statutory Human Rights Act has been the foundation on which the committee’s recommendation on this point has been built. I would also like to thank the hundreds of individuals, organisations and experts who generously gave their time to contribute to this inquiry. Australia is well served by our vibrant and tireless civil society. Thanks are also due to the committee’s hard working secretariat and to my fellow committee members who engaged in this inquiry with enthusiasm and in good faith.

1.6The committee would like to particularly acknowledge the dedication and commitment of our former committee colleague, the late Peta Murphy MP. Peta was a passionate advocate for the need for an Australian Human Rights Act, saying in her maiden speech that one of the challenges we need to solve as a nation is the introduction of ‘a federal bill of rights so that complex, important national debates can occur within a comprehensive national human rights framework’. Peta became a member of this committee so as to participate in this inquiry, and her insightful and incisive questions during the public hearings helped shape the evidence the committee received and a number of the committee’s important recommendations.

1.7As Peta said in her maiden speech, meeting the challenge of introducing appropriate statutory human rights protection requires a willingness to persist with complex debates over a sustained period, longer than the 24-hour news cycle. Building a genuine and sustained culture of respect for human rights among our federal institutions will take time, commitment and leadership – together with legislative change. While there will be those that will seek to paint this reform as divisive and unnecessary, the adoption of a statutory Australian Human Rights Act strikes the right balance between protecting individual rights and freedoms and respecting parliamentary sovereignty and our constitutional system. Its major benefit will be, as Peta said, in driving a human rights culture within the federal public service, so that those who serve us have a clear framework to consider and balance the rights and freedoms of everyday people when making decisions and developing laws and policies that affect us all.

Mr Josh Burns MP

Chair

May 2024