The Prime Minister must sack the eSafety Commissioner

UAP Senator Ralph Babet has called upon the Labor government to remove Julie Inman Grant from the role of eSafety Commissioner, a position that he said, “she is wholly unfit to occupy”.

“The Commissioner is plainly partisan in a role that demands impartiality,” Senator Babet said.

“Speaking on July 18th at Government House in NSW, Inman Grant made comments about the former and likely next President of the United States Donald Trump that should immediately disqualify her from an important independent regulatory role such as this.

“She implied in her speech that Trump was a “grave threat” to “democratic ideals and institutions” and went on to tell the crowd that President Trump was, and I quote, “a major super-spreader of mis and disinformation”.

“That Inman Grant describes the former President and current Republican nominee in such terms, just months before he is likely elected as the leader of a major ally and our most important security partner, is not only unacceptable but completely against the national interest.

“It is unconscionable that a bureaucrat so lacking in judgment could occupy such an important position in our nation. “Inman Grant has also acted beyond the scope of her role and has strayed into diplomatic foreign affairs territory.

“Furthermore, that Inman Grant offered no criticism or critique of Democrat leader Joe Biden, only served to reinforce the view that Inman Grant is completely biased. Worryingly, she does not attempt to disguise her disdain for President Trump and feels free to abuse the privilege of her government appointed position to score cheap partisan political points.

“Inman Grant herself has been accused by journalist Tyrone Clarke of “crying wolf” and pushing a “misleading” narrative about an uptick in race-based complaints as a result of the increased national discussion around the Voice referendum. In fact, there were only two complaints made by Indigenous Australians relating to the referendum between January 2022 and October 2023.

“The Commissioner also pursued Chris Elston also known as ‘Billboard Chris’ on the X platform (a Canadian citizen) for the grand crime of misgendering a biological female ‘Teddy Cook’ who now self identifies as a male. Teddy Cook has a previous professional working relationship with the office of the eSafety Commissioner. Is this the reason why Chris Elston was pursued so vehemently?

“The Commissioner is wielding her powers arbitrarily. She has not publicly sought to have the footage of the attempted assassination of Donald Trump deleted, but she zealously pursued the takedown of the footage from the Wakeley church stabbing of Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel. Why the inconsistency? Did the Muslim vote affect the decision-making process?

“That an Australian bureaucrat would use their position in such an unprofessional manner – commenting on foreign leaders – would not be tolerated in any other instance and most certainly should not be tolerated in this one. She is a bureaucrat and not an elected Parliamentarian.

“Julie Inman Grant must be immediately removed from her role and replaced with someone who can be trusted to fulfil the duties of the position in an impartial manner rather than to use it as a platform for personal editorialising and political smearing,” Senator Babet said.