Australian Senate: “GTFO AVN”

Today Senator Richard Di Natale tabled a motion, which was unanimously carried,  in the Australian Senate. From Senator Di Natale’s post, just in:

The text of the motion was as follows:

That the Senate –

(a)        notes the low vaccination rates in certain parts of Australia, and the threat this poses to the health of Australian children;
(b)        notes the irresponsible campaign run by the Australian Vaccination Network, which is spreading misinformation about the risks of vaccination and discouraging parents from vaccinating their children;
(c)        calls on the AVN to immediately disband and cease their harmful and unscientific scare campaign against vaccines.

There has been some disquiet already about “(c)”, and the possible over-reach of parliamentary power in shutting down unsavoury organisations, which no doubt Meryl Dorey and her band of health rogues will milk to their black hearts’ content. Senator Di Natale has already answered this question on Twitter:

That is, it’s not an order which will be carried out by the Federal Parliament. It is, at this stage, a polite GTFO of healthcare. We know it won’t achieve anything at this stage, but, anything which puts the AVN on notice is okay by me. The motion is still to be debated at a later stage.

As Senator Di Natale states:

“Today the Senate has joined with the public health community to send a clear and strong message to those who are peddling lies about vaccines – they should pack up and go home.”

So, AVN. Just do as you’re asked, for once, and GTFO.

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In my haste I forgot to add a link to this cracking piece by the cracking Tory Shepherd, from earlier today:

Amid the grey flutter was a bright jewel – a piece of sensible politicking that should begin a bout of bipartisanship.

Greens Senator Richard di Natale – former GP and clearly a man of science – is planning to move a motion to disband the Australian Vaccination Network.

You know them – the most misleadingly named mob getting around.

[read the rest here]