Independent and Greens senators have called on Labor to take urgent action against racism in federal parliament, warning that allowing bigotry to fester is corroding democracy. In a letter to Senate president Sue Lines, senators Fatima Payman, Lidia Thorpe and Mehreen Faruqi demanded an inquiry and mandatory anti-racism training for politicians.
The five-page letter, sent on Wednesday, detailed what the senators described as 'overt and insidious' racism in the upper house. They said they had been 'belittled, isolated and worn down simply for doing our jobs', and that procedural rules were being weaponised against those calling out racism rather than against racism itself.
The senators cited the example of One Nation senator Pauline Hanson wearing a burqa in the Senate last year, an act for which she was later censured and suspended for seven days. They noted that the presiding officer at the time, Liberal senator Slade Brockman, had refused to take immediate action, saying dress was a matter of conscience, and that attempts by Faruqi and Thorpe to raise points of order were shut down.
They also pointed to a 2023 exchange in which Thorpe challenged a derogatory comment about acknowledging country made by then-senator Hollie Hughes. Thorpe was asked to withdraw her question, while Hughes also withdrew her comment.
The senators have asked Lines to change standing orders to end double standards and to enforce mandatory anti-racism training, beginning with those overseeing proceedings. A previous inquiry into racism and sexism in parliament had lapsed after the 2025 election, and a recent attempt to re-establish it was voted down by Labor and the Coalition. Finance minister Katy Gallagher said the government agreed standards had deteriorated but did not believe an inquiry was the solution.
