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CLAUSE NOTES
Anti-Discrimination Amendment Bill 2015
Clause 1: Short title
This clause provides that the Bill will be cited as the Anti-Discrimination Amendment
Act 2015
Clause 2: Commencement
This clause provides for the Bill to commence on the day on which it receives the Royal
Assent.
Clause 3: Principal Act
This clause provides that the Principal Act to which the amendments apply is the Anti-
Discrimination Act 1998 (the Act).
Clause 4: Section 51A inserted
This is the key clause of the Bill. It inserts a new provision into the Act to provide a
new exception to the prohibition on discrimination.
The new exception relates to the admission of students to religious-based educational
institutions. The wording of the proposed new exception is consistent with the
exception in relation to employees in section 51(2).
The amendment allows religious-based schools to give preference in admission to
students who have the same religious beliefs as the school to which they are seeking
admission.
The amendments only relate to the admission of students to the school and will not
affect the ongoing enrolment of existing students once they have been admitted to the
school.
In addition, the amendment only permits discrimination on the grounds of religious
beliefs, affiliations or activities. It will not allow discrimination against a student or
potential student on the grounds of other attributes such as race, disability, political
affiliation, sexual orientation, relationship status, gender identity and the like as set out in
section 16 of the Act.
Clause 5: Sections 55A and 55B repealed
This clause rescinds sections 55A and 55B of the Act.
The introduction of the proposed new exception means that the exemption provisions
set out in sections 55A and 55B are no longer necessary.
Clause 6: Repeal of Act
This is a standard repeal provision to remove the empty shell of the Bill i.e., the Bill is
repealed after the changes have been incorporated into the principal Act.
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