[no bill text published] Protection for Freedom of Speech, Religion, Press and Assembly
Constitution Amendment (Rights and Freedoms) Bill 2023
Private Member's BillLegislative Council
Legislative Assembly
Assent
Topics
civil liberties freedom of religion freedom of speech freedom of the press human rights right to assemble
Introduced by: John Ruddick MLC (LIBT)
Links to official parliament websites
Effects of this bill
If this bill passes, it means that:
The Debate
What different members said when this bill was debated:
John Graham ALP
“On behalf of the Government, I speak in debate on the Constitution Amendment (Rights and Freedoms) Bill 2023 and the Constitution Amendment (Rights and Freedoms—Referendum) Bill 2023. I thank the Hon. John Ruddick for bringing the bills to the House for debate. I recognise his sincere passion for the issue of freedom of expression and the thoughts that he outlined in his second reading speech.”
Susan Carter LIB
“Free speech is one of our most important rights, and one that we should always be anxious to protect—as is the right to worship freely and to associate together. There is much in the spirit of these pieces of legislation that is commendable. The devil, as always, is in the detail.”
Mark Latham IND
“I support the Constitution Amendment (Rights and Freedoms) Bill 2023 and the Constitution Amendment (Rights and Freedoms–Referendum) Bill 2023 because I believe that in the current environment anything that furthers free speech in our society is worth supporting. Restrictions on free speech have become a dreadful thing in politics.”
John Ruddick LIBT
“I was honoured to have the great Hon. Mark Latham so enthusiastically support these bills. To recap, the Constitution Amendment (Rights and Freedoms) Bill 2023 is about trying to restrict the power of this Chamber and this Parliament to prohibit the citizens of New South Wales from having open expression.”
News articles and press releases
Constitution Amendment (Rights and Freedoms) Bill 2023
The Hon. JOHN RUDDICK — 2023-11-29
The Constitution Amendment (Rights and Freedoms) Bill 2023 and Constitution Amendment (Rights and Freedoms—Referendum) Bill 2023 seek to constitutionally protect the right to free speech in New South Wales. The bills are concerned with preventing this or future New South Wales governments from enacting legislation that would curtail open expression. The second bill seeks to entrench this constitutional right so that it can only be overridden by a referendum of the citizens of New South Wales.