I, too, rise to register my concern in relation to the response of the government to the orders which were passed by this Senate, by our institution, to seek these important documents. This is a policy area of great concern to many Australians, and my office is receiving a lot of contact in relation to the forthcoming social media ban. I’m sure everyone’s office is receiving a lot of contact from our constituents, from the people we represent. So, when the Senate seeks documents from the government, we’re not just doing it for the Senate; we’re doing it for the Australian people. We’re doing it for the people in the gallery and for the people watching these proceedings. We’re doing it to obtain information which they deserve to know. They deserve to have this information. It’s their rights that are being impacted by this social media ban. They have a right to this information.
As Senator Payman outlined, the history and the timetable in relation to this matter is disgraceful, absolutely disgraceful. Way back on 28 July, this institution, the Senate, was seeking this information, and here we are in late October, and still we have the minister get up and give a very desultory response—explanation, if you could call it that—as to why the documents aren’t being provided. In fact, as Senator Payman outlined, the government was actually asked to explain the public interest immunity claim. This is the basis upon which the government claims that the documents shouldn’t be released—because it’s in the public interest that they not be released—but they won’t provide the detail. They won’t provide the basis for the claim. What we receive as senators, as representatives of the Australian people, are these documents covered in black ink—redacted, that’s the term they choose. They’re just covered in black ink—black ink covering up what the Labor government’s doing. It’s unacceptable, and it’s not just happening in relation to this order for the production of documents that was prosecuted by Senator Payman; it’s happening across the board. The fact of the matter is that there’s a lack of transparency on the part of the Labor government. They said one thing in opposition, and now they’re doing something entirely different in government.
It’s not just me saying this. The Centre for Public Integrity, which pursues good governance in this country and is one of the most respected non-government organisations, has issued a report card on the Albanese government’s integrity. This is what they say. These aren’t my words. These are the words of a non-government organisation with some outstanding Australians behind it who are seeking better governance in our public institutions. This is what they say in relation to commitment to transparency, which is what we’re talking about at the moment, Senator Payman: ‘Leaning into a Culture of Secrecy’. That’s the description that the Centre for Public Integrity gives in their report card of the Albanese Labor government. Can there be any better example than when this Senate passes a motion introducing an order requiring the production of documents and either we don’t get the documents at all or the documents we get are covered in black ink? I don’t know how they source the amount of ink they need in their photocopiers et cetera to actually deliver all these documents covered in black ink.
What else does the report card say? ‘Cronyism: More Jobs for Mates’—that’s the second point in the report card in relation to the Albanese Labor government. This is what they say, and this is another document we were seeking:
It continues to withhold the 2023 Briggs Review of Public Sector Board Appointments …
This is notwithstanding the fact that this Senate, through which we represent the Australian people, has sought a copy of that document in relation to the processes by which people are appointed to public boards. Here’s another one, and Senator Payman will know this and has argued in relation to this very passionately and correctly: ‘Cutting Support for Those Who Hold Government to Account’. That’s the other thing the Albanese Labor government has done. It has weakened parliament’s capacity to hold the government to account. How? By cutting our staffing and the resources that we can use to hold the government to account. This is an appalling report card in relation to the transparency of the current Labor government. (Time expired)
