Multicultural Australia

I rose in the Assembly today to respond to a disturbing speech that was given in the Federal Parliament yesterday by Senator Anning. The senator spoke fondly of a time in Australia’s past when immigration ‘actively discriminated in favour of Europeans’. As I pointed out, neither my Liberal colleague Elizabeth Lee nor I would be here under such conditions. Senator Anning may thing that Australia would be better without us, but he’s wrong!

I and the Canberra Liberals unreservedly condemn these remarks. I am honoured to serve in the Assembly as a migrant, as a woman, as one whose first language is not English, and as a proud member of the party that, under the leadership of Liberal prime ministers Sir Robert Menzies and Harold Holt, reversed the Immigration Restriction Act and did much more to dismantle the ‘white Australia policy’. We likewise condemn Senator Anning’s ugly remarks about the faith of Australian Muslims.

Click on the arrow button to read my speech.