Australia likes to see itself as a fair country, but the people who come to the St Vincent de Paul Society tell a different story. We meet families choosing between rent and food, people putting off going to the doctor because they cannot afford it, and children missing school because there is no money for basics.

Right now, there is nothing at the national level that guarantees essentials such as secure housing, food, education and medical treatment as basic rights. That is why the Society supports a national Human Rights Act; a law that clearly sets out the fundamental rights everyone in Australia needs to have to live a decent life and that requires governments and public organisations to respect them.

As the Society’s submission explains, without a strong law, these rights are too easy to overlook, especially when budgets are tight.

For the people the Society assists, a Human Rights Act could make a practical difference by ensuring decisions about housing, healthcare and income support properly consider human rights for every adult and child living in our nation. While it would not fix everything, it would be a concrete step towards a fairer Australia. 

To read the full story, visit vinnies.link/nat-human-rights or scan the QR code.