By New Zealand Herald
The Israel Folau saga that dominated headlines across the world looks set to have after effects in politics, with conservative coalition MPs in Australia calling for stronger religious freedom laws in the country.
Former deputy prime minister Barnaby Joyce is pushing for religious beliefs to be exempt from employment contracts, according to a report by The Sydney Morning Herald.
"You can't bring people's faith beliefs into a contract," Joyce told the Sydney newspaper.
"Your own views on who God is, where God is or whether there's a God should remain your own personal views and not part of any contractual obligation."
Joyce added that such a law shouldn't be nicknamed "Folau's Law" as it "should be designed for everybody".
As part of an election promise, Attorney-General Christian Porter is due to bring a Religious Discrimination Act to Australian parliament in July as part of an election promise.
Liberal Senator Concetta Fierravanti-Wells joined in on Joyce's sentiment, saying a more immediate legislative action is needed, with an Australian Law Reform Commission review on the issue not due until next year.
"This is vitally important to not only address our concerns but afford protection against these constant incursions from Labor, the Greens and their acolytes. It's a new dawn on this issue," Fierravanti-Wells told The Sydney Morning Herald.
Earlier this month, Folau's four-year A$4 million contract was terminated by Rugby Australia for repeated offensive social media posts about homosexuals.
The 30-year-old former Wallabies star is currently considering his next step and has reportedly approached high-profile Australian workplace relations lawyer as he considers taking Rugby Australia to court over his sacking.
Meanwhile, the Rugby Union Players' Association (RUPA) said there will be a review into players expressing religious beliefs and set out clear guidelines around the matter.
This article first appeared on nzherald.co.nz and is republished with permission
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Even with absences we still had the cattle to make the playoffs. As it was, we nearly stumbled our way into the top 8. Which shows just how easy it was to get there. And still we failed. As for Razor, there are many instances of him patching up the Crusaders roster. Numerous. Several players Id never heard of. Also, using AB legend John Afoa was a classic.
But, some of the games we were losing were from schoolboy errors, or downright confusion. Either the players were really dumb (they weren’t) or they were poorly coached. Given the repetitive nature of errors, brain fades, poor decision making, & loose structures, this all lands with the coaching group.
With only six playoff spots now in SR, & Aussie franchises now consolidated to four, 2025 looks like a tight one. We'll have to tough it out under Penney & hope for the best.
Go to commentsAgree we need a 10, 12, 13 refresh. ASAP. Well, next season now lol. Reiko should be put back on the wing. He'll be an absolute menace there. Imagine 11 Reiko 14 Clarke 15 Jordan as the backfield unit.
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