Fair Agenda

I’m so proud of what our movement has achieved together this year. In key moments - from the US’s attack on abortion access, to the federal election - our movement has mobilised to demand better and campaign for changes that pull us closer to a fair and gender equal future. 

Together our people-power has been critical to: securing a strong MP Code of Conduct for a safer federal parliament; improving relationships and sexuality education in our schools; and securing commitments to stronger action on women’s safety from the new federal parliament. We’ve also laid the foundations for even more impact in the new year - for better funding of women’s safety services; accountability for institutions that cause rape survivors harm; and to address barriers to accessing abortion care.

I’m so excited and hopeful about what it’s possible for our movement to achieve together next year. But I’m also nervous, because right now Fair Agenda doesn’t yet have the funds we need to fully resource our plans for all these important campaigns in the first quarter of next year. 

Fair Agenda needs to raise a further $3,000 in donations from members before the end of the year to be on track to hit the ground running in 2023. Your gift can help the Fair Agenda team resource the next steps across our major campaigns for improved abortion access and action for victim-survivors; without having to divert precious capacity to fundraising or cutting campaign costs. 

To ensure our movement can realise this potential to improve outcomes for victim-survivors and patients seeking abortion care - I’m asking for your help. Can you make a donation to ensure the Fair Agenda movement can keep delivering these vital campaigns in the new year? 

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Here’s what the Fair Agenda movement made possible together in 2022:

We got a majority of federal parliamentarians committed to stronger action for women’s safety!

Ahead of this year’s election we asked all candidates if they’d champion the changes needed to end all forms of gender-based violence, through the Pledge for a Safer Future.

We secured commitments to every component of the Pledge from 16 of the MPs elected in federal parliament - including critical crossbench Senator David Pocock, all Greens Senators and MPs, and independent MPs Zoe Daniel, Kylea Tink, Monique Ryan, Allegra Spender and Andrew Wilkie. We also secured a party-wide commitment from the new ALP Government to progress action across all six categories of the Pledge.

Here’s Fair Agenda Executive Director Renee and Campaign Manager Alyssa meeting with Minister for Women Katy Gallagher about Fair Agenda member’s priorities; and the commitments the Albanese Government have made to improve outcomes for women and accelerate progress to gender equity.

We secured a Senate Inquiry into Universal Access to Reproductive Healthcare!

When the news broke that abortion rights were under attack in the US; Fair Agenda members came together to defend and advance our reproductive healthcare rights here at home.

On International Safe Abortion Day Fair Agenda brought together Independent Senator David Pocock; Greens Senator Larissa Waters and Liberal MP Bridget Archer for a press conference, to draw attention to the many practical barriers that still prevent timely access to abortion care; and the need for federal government action to address barriers. That same day we secured a Senate Inquiry into barriers to abortion and contraceptive access that is keeping a spotlight on this issue into the new year. 

Here’s a photo of Fair Agenda Campaign Manager Alyssa Shaw leading the press conference, alongside Senator David Pocock, Liberal MP for Bass Bridget Archer, Senator Larissa Waters.

We helped secure a strong Code of Conduct for federal parliamentarians!

When federal parliament began considering what standards it would require parliamentarians to meet, Fair Agenda mobilised alongside rights and integrity groups to keep a spotlight on the major changes and high standards needed to deliver a safer parliament.

Collectively, Fair Agenda members contributed 36 hours of their time to share their views on what standards should be set; and jointly called for a focus on the values of respect and integrity; and meaningful action to address sexual violence in parliament. 

Fair Agenda then identified key implementation factors that would be critical to achieving meaningful change, and recommended those changes to the committee on behalf of our members. The Fair Agenda team was then invited to give testimony on those recommendations to the Committee. Fair Agenda’s advice and recommendations were reflected in the Committee’s final report, and the strong code of conduct that has been recommended to the parliament.

Here’s a photo of Fair Agenda team members Alyssa and Renee giving testimony to the Joint Select Committee on Parliamentary Standards on behalf of Fair Agenda. 

We helped improve respectful relationships and sexuality education! 

When the national curriculum was up for review, hundreds of Fair Agenda members mobilised to back in expert advice calling for it to include respectful relationships content. Through the combined and coordinated efforts of survivors, policy experts, advocates and political champions, we now have comprehensive consent education in the new national curriculum!

Fair Agenda then kept up the pressure for funding to upskill and support teachers to deliver that new curriculum effectively. Working with Teach Us Consent founder Chanel Contos, Fair Agenda helped bring together a summit of high-profile leaders to talk about implementation requirements for consent and respectful relationship education; including then Minister for Social Services, Anne Ruston, and then Shadow Minister for Women, Tanya Plibersek. We were thrilled that the ALP made an election commitment in this area ahead of that summit - committing to provide $77 million over 5 years to ensure schools students are able to access high quality, age-appropriate consent and respectful relationships education.