Search

On 17 March 2020, Tasmania entered a 'state of emergency' in response to COVID-19. Parliament stands adjourned, and the executive is regulating the crisis through delegated regulations that significantly limit civil rights and freedoms. Despite assurances that Tasmania's Subordinate Legislation Committee would scrutinise executive power throughout the crisis, its role has been limited, due to an overly prescriptive (and we argue incorrect) reading of Tasmania's scrutiny framework, which has not been properly reformed in several decades. This is a salient lesson as to why constitutional laws require regular review and modernisation, to ensure parliaments remain supreme even (and especially) during crises and emergencies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In response to the recent passage of same-sex marriage law and the establishment of a Religious Freedom Inquiry (the Ruddock Panel), there has been considerable public debate on whether current exemptions for religious bodies under anti-discrimination law should be extended to individuals with a religious or conscientious objection to same-sex marriage. The authors compared current proposals for widening exemptions in anti-discrimination legislation to the legal position in the 29 other jurisdictions which permit same-sex marriage. If proposals that are currently debated were enacted, Australia would be the only jurisdiction to wind back its protections for LGBTIQ+ individuals against discrimination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the tension between the judicial and legislative branches of government, and the case of Rodney Nichols, who filed a complaint of discrimination against the Commonwealth with Tasmania's Anti-Discrimination Commissioner.