The Human Rights Law Centre has welcomed the release of the Jenkins’ report, tabled in Parliament today, which recommends both Houses of Parliament establish “clear and consistent” codes of conduct for MPs and Senators and an Independent Parliamentary Standards Commission to enforce them.

Sex Discrimination Commissioner Kate Jenkins stated in her report into workplace culture at Parliament House, that a code of conduct for politicians is crucial to ensuring Parliament is a safe workplace for women and staff.

The Human Rights Law Centre urged the Morrison Government to implement all 28 recommendations in full, warning that without an enforceable code of conduct politicians could not be adequately held to account for silencing complaints about sexual harassment, assault and bullying, or for perpetrating these things themselves.

Federal Parliament is currently the only Australian parliament that does not have standards of conduct for all sitting members.

Alice Drury, Human Rights Law Centre Senior Lawyer said:

“Doctors, teachers and public servants all have to comply with codes of conduct — they are held to a higher standard because of the important roles they play in our society. Our politicians should be too.

“Political leaders have consistently bungled complaints from women, including their own staff, by prioritising colleagues’ political futures ahead of justice and survivors’ wellbeing. After the countless revelations of sexual harassment and assault in workplaces across Australia, it is unacceptable that our political leaders do not have a proper process for such complaints in place.

“It’s time for Prime Minister Morrison to show leadership and commit to implementing these recommendations, including ensuring that our politicians are held to standards of behaviour that align with community expectations and their position and privilege in our society.”

Jenkins’ also recommended that the Public Interest Disclosure Act, the law that protects public sector whistleblowers, be extended to cover parliamentary staff. This would make it a criminal offence to take retaliatory action against a staffer who speaks up about wrongdoing, including sexual harassment. Parliamentary whistleblowers would also have access to a range of legal remedies.

Kieran Pender, Human Rights Law Centre Senior Lawyer said:

“Whistleblowers should be protected, not punished. The exclusion of parliamentary staff from the PID Act is a significant and troubling loophole. Expanding the law’s coverage would be an important step and should be implemented as soon as possible, alongside wider, long-overdue reform of the PID Act.”

The Human Rights Law Centre’s submission to the Jenkins Review can be found here.

Media contact:

Evan Schuurman, Media and Communications Manager, 0406 117 937 or evan.schuurman@hrlc.org.au