2022-11-25
The past twelve months have been extraordinarily rewarding and challenging for our office.
By Senator Mehreen Faruqi
The past twelve months have been extraordinarily rewarding and challenging for our office. The year commenced in the depths of Covid lockdown in New South Wales, when communities of colour and other marginalised groups bore the brunt of the harshest measures and an inadequate government response to support them. We proudly stood with and spoke up for them.
The summer period saw devastating floods and disasters afflict our state; most destructively, the unprecedented floods in northern NSW in February 2022. The urgency and necessity of tackling the climate crisis was underscored by these events for many in our community.
All through these events, we continued our work preparing for the May 2022 federal election and carried on campaigning and parliamentary work in our portfolio areas of responsibility, including education, animal welfare, anti-racism, international aid, and housing. We were pleased that many of our initiatives, including on student debt, public housing, and childcare, became central pillars of the Greens 2022 election platform and beyond. It was a privilege to travel across Australia supporting candidates. Following the election, I was honoured to be elected Deputy Leader of the Greens by my parliamentary colleagues.
We delivered responsive and caring support to our constituents, including those with family and friends in Afghanistan who urgently required evacuation in August 2021.
Education
Our education portfolio work has continued to grow exponentially over the past year. Fee-free and well-funded public education was a central pillar of our election campaign, and our office was so proud to lead this work.
On higher education, wiping student debt was launched as a major election initiative and very well received by our supporters and the electorate more broadly. Our work with university staff, particularly casual staff, continued with enthusiasm and has gathered real momentum.
Through two Senate inquiries we were able to put casualisation and staff conditions squarely on the political agenda and advocate for a better deal for higher education workers. We launched a discussion paper, The University of the Future, in November 2021, and held a number of forums across the country to start a conversation about a vision of higher education based on democracy and equity. We also secured a Senate inquiry into political interference in Australian research and our bill to remove the ministerial veto power over research grants.
School funding and policy continued as a clear focus of our education advocacy. While Labor shifted their language positively during the election campaign, the Greens remain the sole voice in federal parliament committed to shifting the dial on school funding from private to public schools.
The Greens took to the federal election a fully-costed plan to invest $32 billion in our public schools over the next decade and achieve 100 percent funding of the Schooling Resource Standard for public schools by 2023. We advocated strongly on the proposed changes to the national curriculum in response to Liberal attempts to revive history wars.
Following the 2022 election, responsibility for the schools portfolio was transferred to Senator Penny Allman-Payne. I have no doubt Penny, a public school teacher, will be a fabulous spokesperson for schools.
Free and universal early childhood education and care (ECEC) was a central plank of our election platform. For the first time, at this year’s election we fully costed a plan to deliver free and universal ECEC, support the workforce and develop a plan to phase out for-profit early education providers.
With a new government, we anticipate a boost to childcare subsidies, but this will not go anywhere near the injection of public funding that we need. We continue to advocate for the ECEC workforce, who deserve a pay rise and better conditions. I am hopeful that after many years of advocacy, early learning will stay on the political agenda over the coming years and we will be able to win a fairer and more generous system for children and families who deserve a world-class early education and who are desperately in need of change.
Anti-racism
For the first time, the Greens took an anti-racism platform to the federal election. I was very proud to lead this work and spearhead our initiative, which was released on 21 March, the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination.
The Greens’ plan includes mandating anti-racism training for Commonwealth parliamentarians and employees and providing $50m for a national anti-racism strategy. I was pleased to host the first ever national Greens forum on anti-racism in February 2022, which was held over Zoom and heard from speakers on anti-racism organising, First Nations advocacy, and political engagement in communities of colour.
Our work on anti-racism goes from strength to strength, and will continue through my work on the joint committee on Parliamentary Standards, which is developing codes of conduct for parliamentarians and staff.
Animal welfare
The Greens remain the voice for animals in federal parliament. Our strong election initiative included a ban on live export, an end to factory farming and the establishment of an independent office of animal welfare.
Over the 2021-22 summer, the northern summer ban on live sheep export was reviewed by the Department of Agriculture. The Greens fought against the weakening of the ban and stood with communities against the perpetuation of cruelty against animals on live export ships. Our focus is now on ensuring the new government keeps its commitment to shut down live sheep export and put a clear timeline on the end of the industry.
We continue to campaign with communities on ending gambling-fuelled animal cruelty, i.e. horse and greyhound racing. This year we launched our Horse Racing Transition Plan that would shut down commercial horse racing in Australia. The plan would be coordinated and managed through the establishment of a Horse Racing Transition Taskforce and funded by a Horse Betting Levy that would finance transition activities as determined by the taskforce. Our annual ‘Nup to the Cup’ event was attended by hundreds who purposefully boycotted the cruelty of the Melbourne Cup.
Housing
Housing and homelessness have continued to grow as issues of significant concern for the community. Rents are sky-high and large parts of our major cities and regional areas are now all but locked out for many young people in particular.
Our plan for one million homes, to be built over twenty years, comprised a major component of our election platform and was very well received. Our innovative platform included a shared equity ownership scheme, which will make it easier for people to buy their first home for $300,000. We are also committed to winding back negative gearing and the capital gains tax discount, and introducing a national charter of renters’ rights.
I was proud to lead this work and continue to speak for those who have been locked out of housing or who are otherwise feeling housing stress and unaffordability. Following the 2022 election, responsibility for Housing was taken up by the new Member for Griffith, Max Chandler-Mather MP. Max will do a fantastic job as spokesperson in the new parliament.
International aid and development
The Greens’ advocacy on international aid and development remains absolutely critical as both Labor and the Coalition neglect our global responsibilities. In this portfolio, we have reoriented our approach to overseas aid to consider it a matter not of charity but of global justice and reparations.
As part of our ‘Decolonising International Aid’ election platform, launched in a keynote speech at the ACFID Conference in September 2021, the Greens committed to providing support and reparations for the Global South by boosting international aid through Official Development Assistance, providing $4.5 billion of climate finance and reparations to 2025, and cancelling bilateral debt obligations.
We also continued our political focus on pushing Australia to sign onto the TRIPS Waiver on Covid-19 vaccines and ensure vaccine equity across the Global South. Following the federal election, the portfolio was renamed ‘International Aid and Global Justice’ to better reflect the political focus of the portfolio.
NSW
It has been a joy and a privilege to represent the people of New South Wales over the past 12 months. The people of our state suffered substantially under Covid-19 lockdowns, and of course, several thousand tragically lost their lives to the virus.
I have maintained an active travel calendar across the state, however, and have been able to meet with communities in all parts of New South Wales. During the federal election, I had the privilege of launching many fantastic Greens lower house campaigns in electorates all across the state, and played a key role in our statewide campaign to (successfully!) elect a second Greens senator for New South Wales.
Constituent support
Over the past year, our office has continued to provide support to constituents from across New South Wales and Australia, as well as their friends and family overseas. Covid-19 lockdowns were experienced most harshly by the most vulnerable in our community, so support and compassion for them was critical. The lingering impacts of Covid-19 on visa waiting periods, as well as ongoing problems with our immigration system, have taken up significant time. Our office was also very involved in supporting those who required evacuation from Afghanistan in August 2021.
We will continue to use every communication channel we have with the government to assist people. My team will continue to work closely with other Greens’ offices to respond with care and compassion.
Media
We have continued to build a strong media presence for our work over the past year, with appearances and features on major national programs and publications including ABC Q+A, Radio National Breakfast, Afternoon Briefing, and the Monthly, as well as within regular news reporting across TV, print, radio and online.
Committees
● Senate Select Committee on Job Security.
● Education and Employment committee:
- All relevant bill inquiries, including on the Greens private members’ bill on political interference in Australian Research Council grants.
● Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade:
- Sub-committee on PFAS contamination.
● Environment and Communications committee:
- Inquiry into seismic testing.
- Media diversity in Australia.
● Economics committee:
- Inquiry into wage theft and unlawful underpayment of employees' remuneration.
● Education hearings of the Senate’s Select Committee on COVID-19.
● Joint Select Committee on Parliamentary Standards
● Temporary Chair of Committees
● Senate Estimates committees:
- Education and Employment
- Community Affairs
- Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade
- Rural, Regional and Transport
- Legal and Constitutional Affairs