Up next the chief political reporter for sky News Australia hosted program wrapping up the most recent session of the australian parliament. Many members of the Australian Senate and house of representatives focus the question to Chamber Leaders on a strange relationship with the u. S. And the Trump Administration asking about recent australian diplomatic overtures to the white house and recent shift in american Climate Change policy that clash with australian policies. The parliament was expected to sit next to midmay of 2070. This is 30 minutes. Hello and welcome. Like most important allies of the United States, australia has had a big focus on the duration of the Trump Administration early in his presidency. Thank you, mr. President. My question is also to the attorney general. Can he advised the senate what steps members of the campbell government have taken to engage with the new Trump Administration . The attorney general . Yes, yes, i can. Thank you very much indeed, centered. In the 50 a day day since President Donald Trump was inaugurated our government has been swift to engage with key figures in the new administration. As we know Prime Minister has spoken with the president. The outcome of that conversation was the president s honoring and agreement on america to accept refugees, an up or not australia. Already three ministers have a facetoface meetings with their cabinet level counterparts and other senior officials. Last month foreign minister bishop travel to washington to meet the Vice President , the secretary of state and the National Security advisor. Also last month the defense minister held meetings with the new secretary of defense general mattis. This morning i return for me nice sit at a visit to washington in new york during which i had meetings with many others attorney general jeff sessions, the new director of the cia mike pompeo, the director of the fbi james comey, the white House Homeland Security advisor tom bossert and the chairman of the Senate Intelligence committee, senator burr. While in new york i met with the undersecretary general of the United Nations for Political Affairs who has responsibility for counterterrorism. I also spoke to the council on Foreign Relations on the topic islamist terrorism in southeast asia. On my visit of his company by the secretary of the Attorney Generals Department and senior officials. My meetings like those of miss bishop and send it a pain are hardly a reminder of the depth and breadth of our relationship with the United States, and indicates at the meeting from ive recently returned, in particular its intelligence and security agencies. Thank you, mr. President could the attorney general advice this and what the outcome of these meetings was . Thank you, senator, sorry, mr. President. I can tell honorable senators that the level of cooperation between american and australian agencies, intelligence and National Security matters both bilaterally and through the five eyes group of nations remain entirely unaffected by the change of administration in washington. Including the current threat posed by isis over the middle east and our region. We discussed the broader National Security environment in the region and beyond and was able to reaffirm the importance of continued engagement question. Mister president , the attorney general informed the senate, critical of National Security standpoint that the relationship between australia and the United States continues on affected by changing political circumstances. As you know, the United States has been and remains australias most important Strategic Partner in National Security matters. That partnership is unaffected by changes of administration, it is as crucial to australias National Security today as it has ever been. The 12th of september 2014 when the National Terrorism threat label went about it, australia has experienced four terror related attacks and four potential attacks were disrupted by agencies. A number of those disruption which have not been interdicted, the direct consequence of the deep intelligence sharing between australia and its allies and in particular the United States. There has been a debate about discrimination in the country and labor has been critical of the proposed word change in the act. The opposition each the Prime Minister, today is harmony day, International Day for the elimination of Racial Discrimination. Why today of all days is the Prime Minister charged in weakening protections against racist hate speech . Thank you for the question and today we are strengthening, we are strengthening we are standing up for freedom of speech, standing up for freedom of speech that underpins the greatest Multicultural Society in the world. This is what the Australian Labor party believes. They believe australia was only held in check i can tell you, mister speaker, we have more for the australian people from the labor party down. Know that our precious freedom, our freedom speech is the foundation of the great democracy that caused so any people to come from every corner of the world to join our most successful Multicultural Society and the world and we are here in this house of free speech with the screams of the labor party. Not very interested in hearing but their own prejudices. Mister speaker, the veteran agency lost its credibility a long time ago. It needs to be reformed and we are putting it in language that does the job is what we are delivering is a strong system. A section that will do a better job protecting australia against racial vilification and at the same time ensure that University Students are putting posts on facebook and cartoonists like bill leak dont have to look over their shoulder to see if there is a commission or a lawyer waiting to pounce on them. Lets be clear. The language we are proposing to insert in this bill is precisely the intent of the bill when it was first introduced. And mister speaker, if i go through the Explanatory Memorandum of the floor when it was introduced in the house by labor government it says, it says the bill maintains balance between the right to free speech and protection of individuals from harassment and fear. So the language we are using is appropriate, consistent with the intention of the legislation and it is clear, it is plain, it is a strong fair law standing up for freedom of speech and protecting australia against racial vilification. The government defended its move in changes to section 8 of the Racial Discrimination act, it is about protecting free speech. Thank you, mister president. My question is to minister representing the Prime Minister. The coalition to advance multiculturalism, 20 organizations including the council of christians and jews and the Vietnamese Community said, quote, the governments decision to perceive the watering down of racial vilification is utterly shameful and the principles of multicultural australia. Why ignore the concern of the very communities it legislated to protect . Attorney general representing the Prime Minister. The government isnt ignoring anybodys concerns. What the government does believe is we should be able to have a sensible and respectful debate about the question of how these laws protect the very people vilification laws need to protect and the government believes it has done that, is proposing to do that by putting in the list of prohibited conduct, racial harassment. There has been so much noise in this debate, so much history and too listening to each others points of view. I dont know any serious person who has studied section 8 as currently written who would defend it as the best possible way, as the best possible way in which this law can be expressed the president of the Human Rights Commission said the law could be improved. The president of the Australian Law Reform Commission who recommended that the law should be improved, not professor george williams, a former labor Party Selection candidate and team of south wales who would suggest the law should be improved, and does not david maher who is not a supporter of my side of politics who suggested the law should be improved, not professor sarah joseph from the center of human rights law who suggested that the law should be improved. We listen to every contribution to this debate but please dont tell you, and please dont tell you that there is anyone in this debate who says we should not have a serious discussion about how to write any vilification laws. Thank you, attorney general. Order. Given you just insulted the coalition to advance multiculturalism could i give you a quote my colleague . We are not snowflakes with his human beings we need to be robust. Does the minister agree australias insulting or humiliating comments based on their race just need to toughen up . In the course of considering reforms, i have met with Many Community councils. Many Ethnic Community leaders and not one of them, not a single one of them has said to me under no circumstances should you reconsider the language of section 8. There is a variety of points of you and that is fair enough. In a liberal democracy. But please dont tell me there is any representative of any community in australia who would say under no circumstances should an Australian Government the about even think about trying to make it as effective as possible and i dont think you will find a single representative of any Community Group who would disagree with government view that including prohibition against racial harassment is a good reform measure. Final supplement for questions. Thank you, mister president. Today the minister told australia, the subject of racial abuse, offensive bruising, that is what a democracy is. Could the minister outline how much racial abuse does democracy require . Attorney general . We all know in a free society and a democracy there is room for robust debate. That is why 20 years ago the high court acknowledged and implied constitutional freedom of political communication. The reason the high court acknowledged in a series of decisions, necessarily implicit in the nature of australia, a parliamentary democracy, should actually be a constitutionally recognized protection of freedom of speech. Do you dispute that . Our society is based on freedom of speech but it is based on other values as well including tolerance, Mutual Respect and strong and robust. Questions about the direction of donald trump on a range of issues including Climate Change was will they push ahead with the Paris Agreement . That remains a big focus of the green party in our country. My question for the Prime Minister, members of the us military, National Security establishment last night warned Climate Change is a Security Threat with sea level rising and feeling confidence terrorism. Do you agree there are National Security implications from Climate Change . If so, given fossil fuel reserves need to stay in the ground, rule out letting the Northern Australian Infrastructure Fund or any other public money subsidize the call mine and associated infrastructure, or use taxpayer is to threaten our way of life . I think the honorable member for his question and the honorable member would be aware the government is very alert to the risk of Climate Change and the National Security implications, rising sea levels particularly in our region and we have substantial programs to help neighbors in the pacific deal with consequences of rising sea levels and all the security implications thereof. As far as the call mine is concerned i say this to the honorable member. I understand that his party, he had his party wants to prohibit all coal mining in australia. I understand that. That is their policy. Mister speaker, were australia to stop exporting coal tomorrow, not the wood billions of dollars of export revenue be lost, not only with thousands of jobs be lost but there would be no benefit to the Global Climate whatsoever because if our call exports stopped they would simply be sourced from other countries, indonesia and colombia being two that spring to mind but there are many others the reality is the australian coal industry produces call of cleaner quality, higherquality. Our exports as the honorable member would achieve, nothing except reducing the Living Standards of australia and shatter the lives of living in communities that depend on the coal industry. It would be an exercise in ideological utility and an exercise that i have to say the honorable member with great respect, so characteristic of his party which seems to want to do you just realize australia, for no reason than ideological ones. Traditions and processes followed the british tradition of westminster and that attack on westminster generated a lot of response. The horrific news of an attack in westminster in london, we express solidarity with the people of britain and sympathy for the lost in this terrible attack and condemned terrorism. The Australian Government has taken to supported offer assistance to britain on behalf of australian people. The attorney general representing the Prime Minister, senator brandes. Thank you for giving me the opportunity. Senators will be aware five individuals have died, 40 people injured in a terrorist attack near the British Parliament building yesterday afternoon london time. Metropolitan police one police officer, three civilians and the attacker. The investigation is still ongoing. British authorities have confirmed the currently operating on the belief this is a result of islamist related terrorism. I am sorry to tell the senate, australian has been hospitalized in london with injuries sustained in the attack and the staff in london offering assist as the Prime Minister said this morning the attack on the British Parliament is an attack on freedom and democracy everywhere. We are deeply served by the large loss of innocent lives. The Prime Minister rightly described the attack as and depraved, police and Security Services to risk their lives to keep their citizens safe as we stand in solidarity with people of the United Kingdom and the face of such tragedy, australian can be reassured our agencies and these forces are working relentlessly to keep us safe. May i conclude by echoing the words of the Prime Minister, we will never let terrorists divide us, challenge our democratic way of life and the freedoms which we cherish. Thank you. I think the minister. Given australias relationship with written can the minister talk about how countries are working together to fight terrorism . Yes i can. We work at the ministerial level and agency level and policeing level and a diplomatic level to defeat terrorism. As you know, australia and are both members of the group of nations, the closest Intelligence Partnership in the world and through these arrangements we share intelligence. I can tell the senate fast intelligence sharing arrangement has been responsible for alerting Australian Authorities to and preventing terrorist strikes at home. Our agencies and Police Forces operate closely together, close collaborators. Officers, Australian Police and agencies located, british agencies and the reverse is true. Thank you, mister president. The government is working to counter extremism in australia and abroad to ensure Early Detection in diverse communities. The governor has responded to increase