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Digital ID Repeal & COVID Response Commission Bills Introduced

It’s been a big week for cross-party collaboration on issues we’ve been strong on from the very start.

Digital ID Repeal Bill 2024

I co-signed the Digital ID Repeal Bill alongside Senators Antic, Babet, Canavan, Hanson and Rennick, which was introduced into the Senate Wednesday, 26 June 2024.

This Bill aims to repeal the government’s dystopian and ill-conceived Digital ID Bill.

What everyday Australians need is a Bill that protects their privacy, not one that removes it.

The way this Bill was rushed through the Senate without debate was reprehensible and an abuse of Senate process.

COVID-19 Response Commission of Inquiry Bill 2024

2 years ago I promised to hound down those responsible for the damage our COVID measures caused to Australians.

On Tuesday, in company with Senators Antic, Canavan, Rennick and O’Sullivan, a Bill was introduced to immediately commence a Senate Select Commission of Inquiry into our COVID response. The Terms of Reference in this Bill includes the recommendations from my recent committee inquiry.

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Senate Committee Calls for a Royal Commission into COVID

The final report from the Legal and Constitutional Affairs Committee regarding the Terms of Reference for a Royal Commission into the federal government’s handling of COVID-19 has been released.

This inquiry was initiated after the Senate passed my motion to establish it, which comes after extensive efforts by One Nation to uncover the truth about Australia’s COVID response.

The good news is that the committee recommends the federal government establish a Royal Commission to thoroughly examine Australia’s response to the pandemic and its impacts on the community. The report includes comprehensive terms of reference, covering all aspects that Australians are keen to see addressed, including the vaccines.

I appreciate the committee’s diligent work and welcome this report. I will address this matter further in Parliament next week.

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The Government’s Health Department Hides from a Royal Commission into COVID

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In January, the Senate held a committee inquiry into appropriate Terms of Reference for a Royal Commission into COVID. This is the Royal Commission the Prime Minister promised during the election campaign, which Senator Gallagher also promised. Instead the Prime Minister called a review of the government’s response, which excludes state and territory responses.

Many have slammed the Prime Minister’s COVID review panel as a “toothless tiger” and support a Royal Commission instead. Doctors, unions, human rights lawyers, vaccine injured, and Royal Commission experts were among the witnesses who provided submissions and gave evidence at the Senate inquiry tasked with proposing Terms of Reference for a future COVID Royal Commission.

Why did the Government Health Department not partake in this inquiry? Could it be to avoid scrutiny from the Committee that would result from making a submission? Judge for yourself.

Transcript

Senator ROBERTS: The department and its agencies did not make a submission to the Senate inquiry into appropriate terms of reference for a possible future royal commission into COVID. I would have thought, Minister, that the department that ran our COVID response would be the first to put forward its position on the matter. Why the silence? Is the department hiding from committee scrutiny? 

Senator McCarthy: We do have an inquiry underway—an independent one—looking into COVID, so I reject outright your question. 

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