MARK DREYFUS MP

Malcolm Turnbull today confirmed in Question Time that there will be no single national redress scheme for survivors of institutional child sexual abuse, while there is a Liberal Government.

The Senate has today voted by a substantial majority to establish an inquiry into Senator George Brandis's appalling attack on the independence of the Solicitor-General.

The Turnbull Government's $160 million plebiscite on marriage equality has not even gone to cabinet and already the government has descended into open warfare.

Attorney-General George Brandis has made the astonishing admission this afternoon that he personally approached a lawyer who represented his son and who has donated money to the Liberal National Party in order to offer him a senior role on the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) with a salary of $370,000 per year for the next five years.

All Australians should be extremely concerned about revelations this afternoon that George Brandis appointed an LNP donor and lawyer who represented his son in court to a senior role on the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) with a salary of $370,000 per year for the next five years.

Reports today of a scathing analysis by the Australian National Audit Office of the Government's flagship countering violent extremism program,Living Safe Together, are extremely concerning.

Today's judgment from the Full Court of the Federal Court that there are no grounds for George Brandis to continue to block my simple request for parts of his ministerial diary is a victory for transparency, accountability and common sense.

Prime Minister Turnbull was given repeated opportunities to stand up to Cory Bernardi and his right-wing cabal in Question Time today and rule out weakening protections against race hate speech. He failed.

Parliament is only just opened, and Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull is already facing an open rebellion from his own conservative backbench bent on watering down protections against hate speech.

The revelations on last night's 4 Corners program of serious and repeated cyber security breaches of Australian government agencies and contractors are of deep concern to Labor.