[Greens-Media] FW: Citizenship Bill puts more power in Andrews' hands

[Edwards, Jon (Sen K. Nettle)]

>  -----Original Message-----
> From: 	Lawson, Damien (Sen K. Nettle)  
> Sent:	Tuesday, 31 July 2007 4:41 PM
> To:	'news.canberra at aap.com.au'
> Subject:	Citizenship Bill puts more power in Andrews' hands
> 
> Citizenship Bill puts more power in Andrews' hands
> 
> 31.07.07
> 
> Greens Senator Kerry Nettle today urged fellow Senators to oppose the
> Government's Citizenship Testing Bill which is set to put further
> discretionary powers in the hands of the Immigration Minister Kevin
> Andrews.
> 
> The Australian Citizenship Amendment (Citizenship Testing) Bill 2007
> due to be debated in the Senate next week was backed by Labor and
> government Senators in a Senate committee report released this
> afternoon.
> 
> The bill will allow the Minister to formulate the questions on which
> prospective Australian citizens will be tested.
> 
> The Greens will oppose the bill.
> 
> "The Haneef travesty has shown that Minister Andrews should not be
> determining what is in a citizenship test." Senator Nettle said
> 
> "How can the public have any confidence in this Minister administering
> something as sensitive and divisive as a test of Australian values?"
> 
> "Ministerial discretion to decide the content of the test should not
> be in this bill."
> 
> "The citizenship test will undermine and distort already under funded
> English language programmes that will need to start teaching people to
> pass the test rather than learn English."
> 
> The Greens will move an amendment to remove the Minister's power to
> determine the citizenship test questions from the bill.
> 
> For more information: Kristian Bolwell 0411 638 320
> 
> NB: Senator Nettle's Dissenting report is available on
> http://www.aph.gov.au/senate/committee/legcon_ctte/index.htm
> 
> 
> 
> Damien Lawson
> 
> Office of Greens Senator Kerry Nettle
> Tel: 02 9690 2038 Fax: 9690 2041
> www.kerrynettle.org.au
> 
>