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SENATOR THE HON JAMES McGRATH

SHADOW SPECIAL MINISTER OF STATE

SHADOW MINISTER FOR URBAN INFRASTRUCTURE AND CITIES

SHADOW MINISTER FOR THE OLYMPICS AND PARALYMPICS

SENATOR FOR QUEENSLAND

MEDIA RELEASE

LABOR’S 2025 ELECTION INQUIRY IS COOKED

14 October 2026

Shadow Special Minister of State Senator James McGrath has declared the Joint Standing Committee on Electoral Matters’(JSCEM) inquiry into the 2025 federal election is cooked, warning any recommendations will be tainted by hyper-partisanship and unprofessional conduct.

Speaking in the Senate last night, Senator McGrath, a former Chair and Deputy Chair of JSCEM, said the Labor-controlled committee had abandoned decades of bipartisan cooperation in favour of savage political point-scoring and attacks on Australians of faith exercising their democratic rights.

“JSCEM was once a premier committee of this Parliament, with a proud history of Coalition, Labor and Crossbench members working together to strengthen our democracy,” Senator McGrath said.

“But under its current Chair, Labor MP Jerome Laxale, that tradition has been trashed. This inquiry has descended into a hyper-partisan witch-hunt, and I have completely lost confidence in the Chair and the committee’s processes.

“In my 12 years in Parliament, I have never witnessed such appalling conduct from a parliamentary committee.”

In his speech, Senator McGrath raised serious concerns about the committee's treatment of members of the Plymouth Brethren Christian Church, the Chair's handling of witnesses, large-scale redactions of evidence and allegations surroundingunprofessional conduct regarding the handling of committee documents.

Senator McGrath said the consequences extended beyond the current inquiry, warning that its conduct threatened public confidence in the parliamentary process.

“Electoral reform should be approached with goodwill and bipartisanship, not driven by the political prejudices of certain Labor and Teal parliamentarians,” Senator McGrath said.

“The job of JSCEM is to strengthen public confidence in our democracy, not settle political scores or intimidate Australians who hold different political or religious views.

“The credibility of this inquiry has been destroyed, and any recommendations it produces will be tainted by the way it has been conducted.”

ENDS

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