The role of Racial Discrimination Commissioner serves “no substantive purpose” and should not be filled, according to the Institute of Public Affairs.

With Tim Soutphommasane set to vacate the “Orwellian” role in August, the conservative think tank is calling for recruitment efforts to be abandoned, noting the unelected position is counterproductive when it comes to unifying society.

“The only role is to divide people according to their race or their ethnicity and then talk about a why we should be focusing on the characteristic of skin colour, ethnicity and race above any other characteristic,” says the IPA’s Simon Breheny.

“In abolishing the role, we’d feel a bit freer and we’d certainly save $346,000 a year as taxpayers.”

Mr Breheny says nothing would be lost if the role was left unfilled, with many of the position’s core duties apparently delegated to other bureaucrats.

“You can still make a complaint under section 18c. You can still make a discrimination complaint under the Act, none of that would stop.” 

“The reason for that is the role doesn’t serve any substantive function. All the substance of the role is conducted by other staff at the Human Rights Commission.”

The role of Racial Discrimination Commissioner serves &ldquo;no substantive purpose&rdquo; and should not be filled, according to the Institute of Public Affairs.
With Tim Soutphommasane set to vacate the &ldquo;Orwellian&rdquo; role in August, the conservative think tank is calling for recruitment efforts to be abandoned, noting the unelected position is counterproductive when it comes to unifying society.
&ldquo;The only role is to divide people according to their race or their ethnicity and then talk about a why we should be focusing on the characteristic of skin colour, ethnicity and race above any other characteristic,&rdquo; says the IPA&rsquo;s Simon Breheny.
&ldquo;In abolishing the role, we&rsquo;d feel a bit freer and we&rsquo;d certainly save $346,000 a year as taxpayers.&rdquo;
Mr Breheny says nothing would be lost if the role was left unfilled, with many of the position&rsquo;s core duties apparently delegated to other bureaucrats.
&ldquo;You can still make a complaint under section 18c. You can still make a discrimination complaint under the Act, none of that would stop.&rdquo;&nbsp;
&ldquo;The reason for that is the role doesn&rsquo;t serve any substantive function. All the substance of the role is conducted by other staff at the Human Rights Commission.&rdquo;

A fast-paced show, focusing on current events, social issues, sport and entertainment.

A fast-paced show, focusing on current events, social issues, sport and entertainment.

Advertisement