Increasingly ugly abuses in federal parliament have led a group of independents and Greens to call for urgent intervention by the Labor Party to change the rules, warning that allowing racism and intolerance to “fester” is corroding democracy.
Guardian Australia can reveal independents Fatima Payman and Lidia Thorpe, and the Greens’ Mehreen Faruqi, are demanding Senate President Sue Lines take the issue seriously with a new inquiry and mandatory anti-racism training for politicians.
In a five-page letter sent to Lines on Wednesday morning and seen by Guardian Australia, the senators expressed deep concern about the “overt and insidious” racism they say they have felt and experienced in the upper house.
“When we speak out against racism, we are punished for it,” the senators said.
“This condescending behavior publicly undermines women of color, like us, who seek to speak out on an issue that directly affects them and their community.
“This behavior is part of a broader pattern in which we are treated as interruptions, irritants and subjects of ridicule and criticism, rather than as equal members of the chamber.”
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The senators said recent incidents, in which they said they had tried to report racism but were shut down, had left them feeling “belittled, isolated and worn out simply by doing our jobs.”
“We firmly believe that double standards are used to silence us and that procedural rules are used as a weapon to silence those who speak out against racism, rather than racism itself,” the letter said.
“Allowing racism – overt or subtle – to fester in Parliament undermines its integrity. It corrodes democracy. It harms people. It signals to young women of color across the country that their participation in public life will be met with hostility, contempt and punishment.
“This discourages future leaders from coming forward, speaking out and trusting that their parliament is a place for them.”
Senators pointed to a stunt by One Nation senator Pauline Hanson last year, where she wore a burqa in the Senate for the second time in her parliamentary career.
The senators said that Liberal Senator Slade Brockman, who was presiding as deputy president at the time, stated that “dress is a matter of conscience for each individual senator” and had refused to take immediate action.
Faruqi and Thorpe were ordered back to their seats when they attempted to raise a point of order, the senators said.
According to Senate Hansard and video of the event, Hanson remained in the chamber for at least 25 minutes before the session was adjourned over the matter.
Hanson was ultimately censured for her actions and suspended from the chamber for seven days.
Brockman responded to Payman: “About the same topic, I guess?” when he had also attempted to raise a point of order during the division.
Senators called the comment “condescending.”
“This condescending behavior publicly undermines women of color, like us, who seek to speak out on an issue that directly affects them and their community,” the letter said.
In another example, senators pointed to an exchange between Thorpe and former New South Wales senator Hollie Hughes in March 2023 after the latter made “what appears to be a derogatory comment about the practice of recognizing a country.”
Thorpe intervened and asked: “Is that racism?” but he was asked to withdraw the comment as it was considered a breach of current regulations due to the “imputation of improper motives and personal reflections to the senators.” Hughes also retracted the comment he made.
Senators have asked Lines to consider changing current orders to end double standards and enforce mandatory anti-racism training “beginning with those who have the honor and privilege of overseeing the proceedings.”
In November 2024, Labor had agreed to a Senate procedure committee inquiry proposed by Thorpe and Faruqi to examine racism and sexism in federal parliament.
The committee never met on the issue and lapsed after the 2025 federal election. Labor and the Coalition voted against an attempt by the same senators to reinstate the inquiry earlier this month.
Finance Minister Katy Gallagher said that while the government agreed that the senators’ conduct had “deteriorated to an unacceptable level”, it did not agree that the inquiry was a solution to “remedy that behaviour”.
“I would also encourage those pushing this motion today to reflect honestly on their own conduct towards others in this place,” he said.
Since the publication of the Set the Standard report in November 2021, federal parliament has created a human resources support agency, the Parliamentary Workplace Support Service, and a behavior watchdog, the Independent Parliamentary Standards Commission.
The report also recommended that presidents review standing orders and unwritten parliamentary conventions to ensure they improve security in the chambers and eliminate sexist, exclusionary or discriminatory behavior, language and practices.
Earlier this month, United Australia senator Ralph Babet was singled out by the IPSC for refusing to accept any sanctions for “offensive” and “disrespectful” comments he made on social media.
Under the law, the IPSC can make a public statement about an investigation if an MP fails to comply with a sanction, such as mandatory workplace conduct training.
However, more serious sanctions, including reduction or suspension of salaries, must be referred to the Senate privileges committee and decided by its peers.
