Bill
Constitution Alteration (Freedom of Expression and Freedom of the Press) 2019 [No. 2]
lapsed, as at 2020-02-25. (s) SHARKIE, Rebekha, MP portfolio.
- Sponsor
- Rebekha Sharkie
- Portfolio
- (s) SHARKIE, Rebekha, MP
Recorded stages
- introduced — 2019-07-29
- second reading — 2019-07-29
- other — 2020-02-25
Divisions
No divisions recorded. Most questions are decided on the voices; this does not establish that a bill was unopposed.
Plain-language summary
Written by a model from the explanatory memorandum; not the record, as at 2019-07-29.
This bill would add explicit protection for free expression and press freedom to Australia's Constitution.
It would insert a new chapter and section into the Constitution Act, forbidding the Commonwealth, states, and territories from limiting these freedoms unless the limit meets a test of being proportionate in a democratic society.
The sponsor says the protection would match the United States' First Amendment and would, for the first time, formally recognise Australia as an open, free, and democratic society.
- The bill would enshrine freedom of expression, including press and media freedom, in the Constitution.
- It would allow such freedoms to be limited only when the limitation is proportionate and justified in a democratic society.
- It would set a benchmark for judging existing laws of the Commonwealth, states, and territories.
- It would give constitutional recognition to the open, free, and democratic nature of Australian society.
The Commonwealth, state and territory legislatures, the High Court, and the media and public are affected.
Sources
em
billhome