Julia Banks backs children’s illegal protest at Parliament House

The newly independent MP says what happened at Parliament House yesterday was ‘democracy in action’.

Kerryn Phelps, centre, Julia Banks and Jordon Steele-John with the young protesters inside Parliament House yesterday. Picture: Gary Ramage

Independent MP Julia Banks — who defected to the crossbench from the Liberal Party last week — has supported children taking part in an illegal anti-Adani protest in Parliament House, calling it “democracy at work”.

The MP for Chisholm joined Wentworth MP Kerryn Phelps, who claimed the seat of her friend and former leader Malcolm Turnbull, in backing the protest, which was disrupted by police.

When approached by The Aust­ralian, Ms Banks made the one-line comment before quickly walking back to her office.

Dozens of activists, some of whom brought schoolchildren, staged the anti-Adani protest in the main foyer of Parliament House, calling on Scott Morrison and Bill Shorten to oppose the construction of the Carmichael coalmine in central Queensland.

The protest lasted for more than an hour, closing the public entrance of parliament. Protests are allowed outside Parliament House but not in the building.

Police were forced to physically remove the protesters, who made speeches attacking the Adani projec­t and chanted: “Coal don’t dig it, leave it in the ground, it’s time to get with it.”

Greens senator Jordon Steele-John stood and sung with the protester­s as they were being dragged out of the building by police. Greens leader Richard Di Natale also watched the protest.

“We shouldn’t have had the police here. There was no need for it. It was totally unnecessary,” Senato­r Steele-John said.

House of Representatives Speaker Tony Smith and Senate President Scott Ryan have asked officials to apply a three-month Parliament House ban for adults at the protest. None of the protesters was arrested or charged.

Children involved in yesterday’s protest also took part in last week’s school strike, calling on the government to take more action on climate change.

They said they needed to strike from school again because the Prime Minister was not listening to their concerns.

Townsville schoolgirl Tully Bowtell-Young, 14, said her parent­s had no problem with her coming to Canberra to protest.

“If our government had been doing the right thing and they had been listening to the scientists and listening to the people, we wouldn’t have to be going on strike,” Tully said. “I don’t want to be missing school. I really enjoy school. But I have to, because if I don’t have a futur­e, what is the point in school?”

Mr Morrison said he respected the views of the protesters.

“We don’t always have to agree on everything but we do have to respect each other and we do have to take each other’s views seriously,” the Prime Minister said.

Resources Minister Matt Canavan said: “Activists are reverting to protests and disruption, not ­arguments.”