the quality of government decision making in those jurisdictions. The model also learns from similar models overseas, particularly in the United Kingdom and New Zealand. The Commission’s Position Paper provides a clear framework for a Bill that could be drafted. Past debates about Human Rights Acts have tended to become mired in theoretical perspectives on the concept of a Charter of Rights. The issues raised in those debates often bear little resemblance to what is proposed in model Human Rights Acts: community understanding, policy development, legislative drafting and decision-making by, and accountability of, public authorities. Grounding the next stage of consideration of a Human Rights Act in an Exposure Draft Bill will significantly lift the quality of debate and engagement – including within the forum of Parliament – and ensure that a Human Rights Act is tailored to the federal legal system in which it would operate. 3.3 Support for a national Human Rights Act As noted in chapter 1, the PJCHR commenced an inquiry into Australia’s Human Rights Framework in March 2023. The inquiry is considering whether Australia should implement a new National Human Rights Framework. This includes considering whether Australia should enact a federal Human Rights Act. The PJCHR has focused on the Commission’s model Human Rights Act as a pathway for achieving this. The Commission has closely followed the progress of the PJCHR inquiry. We have listened with interest to the witnesses who appeared at the 6 days of public hearings conducted by the Committee and have reviewed the 300 plus submissions made to the Committee.2 This has revealed a high degree of consensus on the way forward for Australia. Of the submissions lodged with the Committee: • 116 referred to the Commission’s model Human Rights Act and indicated support for it • 178 indicated their support for a Human Rights Act more generally, without referencing the Commission’s model • 5 expressed their opposition to a Human Rights Act • 19 offered no position on a Human Rights Act. In total, 92% of the 318 published submissions supported a Human Rights Act for Australia. That is a striking, indeed exceptional, degree of support. The Human Rights Law Centre, for example, said that: 9 48 A federal Human Rights Charter or Act (federal Charter) is essential to the practical realisation of human rights – to ensuring that human rights ideals and commitments guide government decision-making and empower people. A federal Charter will set out the human rights which the Australian government must consider in law-making, respect in public service delivery and actions, and to which the federal government can be held to account.3 FREE & EQUAL: Revitalising Australia’s Commitment to Human Rights