In a submission to the Senate Select Committee Inquiry on Adopting Artificial Intelligence, the Human Rights Law Centre recommended that Australia adopt a risk-based approach to AI regulation, grounded in international human rights law and principles.
Read MoreOn 27 March 2024, The Australian Government introduced changes to the National Disability Insurance Scheme, through the National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Getting the NDIS Back on Track No.1) Bill 2024. The Bill seeks to respond to concerns related to quality and safeguards, fraud and financial sustainability issues within the scheme.
Read MoreIn submissions to the NSW Government’s inquiry into anti-protest laws, the Human Rights Law Centre called on the Minns Government to protect the right to peaceful protest and scrap draconian anti-protest laws.
Read MoreThe #OurDemocracy coalition are calling on the Albanese Government to overhaul lobbying laws and ensure our politicians are accountable to the people, not big industries.
Read MoreIn a submission to the Independent National Security Legislation Monitor review of secrecy offences, the Human Rights Law Centre has called for Australia’s national secrecy laws to be recalibrated to encourage transparency and accountability in the public interest.
Read MoreIn a submission to a Senate Economics Legislation Committee inquiry into the Treasury Laws Amendment (Tax Accountability and Fairness) Bill 2023, the Human Rights Law Centre, in a joint submission with Griffith University’s Centre for Governance & Public Policy, and Transparency International Australia, welcomed proposed reforms in the Bill to extend tax whistleblower protections.
Read MoreThe Human Rights Law Centre’s submission to the Attorney-General’s Department review of the Public Interest Disclosure (PID) Act, the federal law protecting public servant whistleblowers, calls for a substantial overhaul of the laws.
Read MoreJoint evidence to the inquiry from Transparency International Australia, Griffith University’s Centre for Governance and Public Policy and the Human Rights Law Centre calls for a single Act to protect whistleblowers across all types of private sector entities – revealing that partnerships like the major accounting firms are not adequately covered by any existing laws, for the public or private sectors.
Read MoreIn a submission to the Federal government Department, the Human Rights Law Centre recommended that in place of the proposal for the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) to be a “backstop” option for regulation, ACMA should instead be given sufficient powers to regulate social media platforms effective immediately.
Read MoreIn a submission to the Independent National Security Legislation Monitor (INSLM) Grant Donaldson SC, the Human Rights Law Centre has recommended a range of reforms to improve the National Security Information (Criminal and Civil Proceedings) Act 2004 (NSI Act).
Read MoreThe Human Rights Law Centre, Transparency International Australia and Griffith University's Centre for Governance and Public Policy have called on the Albanese Government to swiftly repeal the worst excesses in Australian secrecy laws and strengthen safeguards for whistleblowing and public interest journalism.
Read MoreThe Human Rights Law Centre welcomes the proposals to strengthen privacy protections in line with international standards and supports stronger protections against invasive targeting, and the introduction of a statutory privacy tort with appropriate safeguards.
Read MoreWhile Australia has been an early mover on reform for online safety and digital media, it lags on key aspects of regulating digital platforms. The Human Rights Law Centre has provided a submission to the parliamentary inquiry into the influence of international digital platforms, calling for greater transparency and regulation to protect human rights.
Read MoreQueensland’s public sector whistleblowing laws were once world-leading; they now lag behind other Australian jurisdictions. This submission by Human Rights Law Centre, Transparency International and Griffith University into the independent review into the Public Interest Disclosure Act 2010 (Qld) calls for an urgent overhaul.
Read MoreThe Human Rights Law Centre, Griffith University’s Centre for Governance & Public Policy and Transparency International Australia have called for a comprehensive reform process to ensure stronger protections for Australian whistleblowers, building on initial announcements by the Albanese government about its first steps.
Read MoreThe effort to make funding behind referendum campaigns transparent is commendable, but should be made as straight-forward as possible. Transparency of the funding for referendum campaigns is every bit as important as transparency in election campaigns.
Read MoreThe Human Rights Law Centre appeared before the Joint Standing Committee on Electoral Matters (Committee), to advocate for reforms that will make elections fairer and our democracy stronger.
Read MoreThe Human Rights Law Centre appeared before the Joint Select Committee on Parliamentary Standards (Committee), to give evidence for reforms that would ensure that politicians and all people working in, or visiting, the Commonwealth Parliament fall under a code of conduct.
Read MoreThe Human Rights Law Centre calls for an enforceable code of conduct that applies to all elected members of federal Parliament and whistleblower laws that protect parliamentary workers.
Read MoreThe Human Rights Law Centre and Digital Rights Watch have written to federal, territory and state health ministers urging them to adopt strong safeguards around the use of facial recognition technology in home quarantine.
Read MoreThe Human Rights Law Centre submission argues that the proposed law is unnecessary and excessive and, if passed, would have a chilling effect on people’s right to come together and speak out about the issues they care about.
Read MoreA joint submission prepared by the Australia Institute Tasmania, the Human Rights Law Centre, and Australian Conservation Foundation to the Department of Justice’s Review into the proposed Electoral Disclosure and Funding Bill 2021 (Tas) and Electoral Matters (Miscellaneous Amendments) Bill 2021 (Tas).
Read MoreThe Human Rights Law Centre welcomes the opportunity to make a submission to the Legal and Constitutional Affairs Legislation Committee on the Constitution Alteration (Freedom of Expression and Freedom of the Press) 2019.
Read MoreThe Human Rights Law Centre welcomes the opportunity to provide input to the PJCIS on the Surveillance Legislation Amendment (Identify and Disrupt) Bill 2020, and is concerned about the disproportionate scope of these powers and the lack of evidence justifying the need for warrants beyond those already available to the AFP and ACIC.
Read MoreThe implications of the proposed regulations, which significantly broaden the scope of activities for which charities can be deregistered, will be felt by virtually every one of the 58,000 charities registered in Australia. The proposal is a major overreach and the need for further regulation has not been (and in our view cannot be) properly explained. No obvious benefit will accrue, yet there is a significant cost to charities and, by extension, Australian civil society.
Read MoreHands Off Our Charities' overarching concern with this review, and all future amendments to the Electoral Act, is that in seeking to achieve electoral integrity, legislation does not stifle the civil society voices that are vital to the health of our democracy, especially in the absence of any compelling evidence.
Read MoreThe Human Rights Law Centre and the Australian Conservation Foundation gave evidence to the Senate Finance and Public Administration Legislation Committee, which is reviewing the Commonwealth Electoral Amendment (Donation Reform and Other Measures) Bill 2020) (Cth).
Read MoreThe Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security (PJCIS) has made bi-partisan recommendations for the scaling back of Australia’s controversial metadata retention regime.
Read MoreToday the Human Rights Law Centre – along with the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre, Get Up!, the Anti Defamation Commission and the Victorian Trades Hall Council – have made a joint submission to the Victorian Government’s Inquiry into Anti-Vilification Protections on how to enact best practice anti-vilification laws to stop hate in its tracks.
Read the submission, Stopping hate in its tracks.
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