The Senate today passed a Greens motion calling on parliamentarians to acknowledge the personal and professional harm caused by discriminatory treatment of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Australian Defence Force members.

“Until 1992, gay, lesbian and bisexual people were explicitly banned from serving in our defence forces,” said Senator Janet Rice, Australian Greens LGBTIQ+ spokesperson.

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The report of the Senate inquiry into the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority (APVMA) has been marred by the revelations that vested interests including RoundUp patent holder Bayer and industry body CropLife have collectively donated $139,000 to the Labor, Liberal and National parties in the 2017-18 financial year, say the Australian Greens.

The release today of the final report of the Select Committee on Electric Vehicles shows Australia is at risk of being left behind in the electric vehicle revolution, say the Australian Greens.

New research showing the harm caused to LGBTIQ+ people by the marriage equality vote including elevated levels of depression, anxiety and stress, is not a surprise, say Greens.

“We all knew the postal survey was going to cause harm to LGBTIQ+ people - everyone from medical experts, mental health organisations, community groups and LGBTIQ+ people continuously warned against it,” said Senator Janet Rice, Australian Greens LGBTIQ+ spokesperson.

In staggering testimony yesterday, the Victorian environment department’s deputy secretary for forest, fire and regions admitted the department’s position on old-growth logging is that it should end.

“The Andrews government is defying its own environment department to allow Victoria’s old-growth forests to continue to be logged. This is a government that applauds its own action on renewable energy with one hand, while continuing to log forests and burn polluting brown coal with the other,” said Ellen Sandell, Victorian Greens environment spokesperson.

A Religious Discrimination Act should not be used to undermine or override state based anti-discrimination laws, the Australian Greens say, following the release of the government’s response to the Ruddock Review.

Greens Justice spokesperson Senator Nick McKim said: “Religious freedom cannot be viewed in isolation, nor should it be used as a political weapon in an act of vengeance for the marriage equality vote.”

 The Senate has passed a motion celebrating the first anniversary of marriage equality being passed in the parliament. The motion also noted the harm caused by the postal survey and that LGBTIQ+ people still face daily discrimination.

“I’m pleased to be celebrating the first anniversary of marriage equality passing parliament,” said Senator Janet Rice, Australian Greens LGBTIQ+ spokesperson.

Last week’s rollover of the New South Wales native forest logging laws for another 20 years is nothing short of criminal.

“This disastrous rollover of last century’s Regional Forest Agreements signs the death warrant for threatened species and gives woodchippers everything they have ever wanted - all their Christmases come at once,” said Senator Janet Rice, Australian Greens forests spokesperson.