Australia politics live news updates: religious discrimination bill goes to Senate after marathon debate

Shadow attorney general Mark Dreyfus said this morning it had been a “shocking process” to get the religious discrimination bill through the house. “This parliament , if invited to work on a bipartisan process can produce legislation in contentious areas that serves to unite our country and not further divide it,” he told ABC radio.

Dreyfus is confident the senate will support further changes, such as adding an anti-vilification provision, and removing the bill’s ability to override state legislation. However, he wouldn’t be drawn on whether Labor would vote down the bill if those amendments weren’t added.

He said despite removing discrimination against all children, there was “much yet to be improved”.

Labor “almost got there” on amending the bill’s statement of belief, he said.

Liberal senator Jane Hume pointed out that the government does not have the same numbers in the Senate. She also told the ABC it was about “competing rights”:

I’m absolutely certain that at the end of the day when the bill passes both houses of parliament, that we’ll land on the right decision, balancing freedoms and rights of people with deeply held religious beliefs and their desire, particularly to send their children to a same-sex school, and making sure we protect the rights of all children as well.

The debate over religious discrimination, and particularly the protections for trans students, will continue today. It’s been full of heat and emotion. Teddy Cook has written this incredibly thoughtful piece about what it’s like for trans people at the moment:

Please don’t forget that trans people are not an ideology; we are real, and we are someone you know.

Anthony Albanese said Labor “fought very hard” for the amendments to the Sex Discrimination Act. He told the Nine network this morning that Labor will seek further amendments to the bill in the Senate:

It has passed. We think there are further amendments that should be made. We think, for example, the issue of vilification against a Muslim woman wearing a hijab, for example, that can occur or someone of any faith being vilified should be included by provisions as well. And we will pursue those amendments in the Senate. There are other issues about discrimination against older people receiving home care. The bill covers aged care residents, but it doesn’t cover home care.

Labor failed to get through a change to the “statement of belief” in the bill. It wanted to make it clear it wouldn’t remove or diminish any existing protections.

Also, this from 1.49am:

I just ran into a veteran MP who said the last time he’d been up this late it had involved … a dance floor.

The house sat all night, debating the government’s religious discrimination bill. It passed just before 5am and will now head to the Senate.

Five Liberal MPs –Bridget Archer, Trent Zimmerman, Katie Allen, Fiona Martin and Dave Sharma – crossed the floor to help Labor and the crossbench add more protections for LGBTQI+ students. Paul Karp filed the full story first thing this morning.

Zimmerman said he felt compelled to cross the floor because trans children are some of the most vulnerable people in society. He told the ABC:

I thought there was a glaring omission and it was a bad signal to send to this community.

But he said there were still “unresolved issues” over potential discrimination against teachers.

The fallout from former Australian of the Year Grace Tame and former staffer Brittany Higgins’ National Press Club address yesterday continues. Tame told a startling story about a “threatening” phone call asking her not to dump prime minister Scott Morrison in it with an election looming. The Nine newspapers are reporting that the Australia Day Council has denied it was behind the call (Tame declined to say who it was).

Last night we heard the latest from the national spy agency. In the annual address Asio boss Mike Burgess said lockdowns and vaccination grievances sometimes “turned to violence” and that Australian elections were at risk from interference. He warned about young children being radicalised and said the agency had detected and disrupted a foreign interference plot.

Spies have been using online dating apps to recruit people.

I hope Karp is having a nap. Katharine Murphy, Sarah Martin, Daniel Hurst, Josh Butler and Mike Bowers are all here to take you through the last sitting day for this week.