HAMILTON BACKS DISCRIMINATION BILL

GROOM MP Garth Hamilton has stood behind his government’s controversial religious discrimination bill, declaring he still supported the current iteration that is likely dead in the Senate.

Mr Hamilton’s comments come as the Australian Christian Lobby ramped up its fight to get the original legislation back before the new parliament.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison indicated he would reintroduce the bill, which was changed by several protections for the LGBTQ community by Labor and the Greens.

“I spoke in favour of it before, I spoke on the bill that we put forward, it had gone through a fair bit of changes, but my position hasn’t changed,” Mr Hamilton said.

While advocates say the bill protects the rights of faithbased schools and institutions, critics say it will empower non-secular organisations to discriminate against marginalised groups.

Independent Suzie Holt said she was opposed to the bill, saying it was in contrast to her “strong liberal views that our government should not be dictating how we live”.