RSA Weekly Sunday 1 February 2026 Hi , We've revealed more extraordinary information this week about how the Australian Bureau of Statistics came to its decision to return to the biased religion question for the 2026
Census. But this was information the ABS didn’t want us to know. The documents provided to us by the ABS had redacted the comment that ABS executives were aware the question “may lead respondents to a particular response”. But through an extremely challenging technical manoeuvre (copy and paste!) we were able to view it. See our top story and Part 3 in our ‘The Census Files’ series on the Rationale website. If you'd like to share your thoughts about articles in the RSA Weekly, email me via: sigladman@rationalist.com.au. Si Gladman Executive
Director, Rationalist Society of Australia |
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| RSA Exclusive: ABS knew religion question “may lead respondents to a
particular response”, documents reveal31 Jan: Executives of the Australian Bureau of Statistics were aware that the biased Census question about religious affiliation “may lead respondents to a particular response” when they opted to re-use it for the 2026 Census, it has been revealed. A document obtained under freedom of information (FOI) laws by the Rationalist Society of Australia had redacted this information, but the hidden text was
able to be viewed by simply pasting the content into a word-processing document. Read the full article |
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| RSA RSA calls for Special Rapporteur visit as UPR overlooks
discrimination against non-religious people20 Jan: The Rationalist Society of Australia is urging the UN Special Rapporteur on religion and belief to visit Australia to conduct an investigation of the discriminatory treatment of non-religious people in government institutions and programs, following Australia’s appearance at the Universal Period Review this week. On Monday, as part of the fourth review of Australia’s human rights record, a
few UN member nations recommended that Australia strengthen measures against discrimination based on religion, but none directly raised the problem of discrimination against non-religious people. Read the full article |
| SYDNEY MORNING HERALD Flash juries and Bible verses: How sovereign citizens clog up Australian courts 1 Feb: So-called “sovereign citizens” are causing
growing delays to the justice system by using bizarre, aggressive tactics to contest minor offences without legal basis. They often file masses of paperwork, represent themselves, argue they’re immune from the law, protest against judges’ authority and appeal convictions based on nonsense “pseudo-law” arguments, all of which jam up already congested courts. Read the full article |
| DAILY TELEGRAPH Australian couple at centre of $1.3m US megachurch funds scandal reject allegations of unauthorised spending 31 Jan: The Australian
founders of a US megachurch have denied wrongdoing after a preliminary audit found they’d potentially misspent more than a million dollars on spa services, surfing, therapy and alcohol. Married pastors Josh and Georgie Kelsey have rejected any suggestion of unauthorised spending amid an ongoing scandal that has fractured the Fount NYC Church. Read the full article |
| THE GUARDIAN (UK) First female archbishop of Canterbury vows to call out misogyny 30 Jan: The first female archbishop of Canterbury has marked her
confirmation in the role with a vow to speak out about misogyny while questions continue about her record on safeguarding. Read the full article |
| THE AUSTRALIAN (VIA CATHNEWS) Assisted dying deaths spike across Australia as thousands use new laws29 Jan: More than 7200 people have died using voluntary assisted dying since it
became legal in Australia in 2019, including 3329 last financial year alone. The rapid uptake means between 1 and 3 per cent of all deaths are now by VAD, with advocates saying that number will grow. Read the full article |
| OUT IN PERTH Tasmanian Parliament hears about discrimination in Catholic Schools29 Jan: Equality Tasmania says the Tasmanian Parliamentary inquiry into school discrimination has
heard compelling evidence of discrimination and bullying in Tasmanian Catholic schools. At yesterday’s hearing two students and a former staff member spoke about their experiences. Read the full article |
| THE GUARDIAN Scott Morrison accused of ‘deeply ill-informed’ attack on religious freedom after Islam speech 28 Jan: Leading Islamic groups have condemned
Scott Morrison as “deeply ill-informed” and “dangerous” after the former prime minister demanded a national register and accreditation for imams, and expanding foreign interference frameworks to capture foreign links in religious institutions. Read
the full article |
| ABC RADIO Scott Morrison calls for regulation of Islam28 Jan: Former PM Scott Morrison has delivered a speech in Israel calling for the regulation of Islamic religious teachings in
Australia. Speaking at an antisemitism conference about last month's Bondi terror attack, Morrison said Islamic leaders had a pastoral duty to protect their communities from radicalisation. Listen to the full
episode |
| MELBOURNE CATHOLIC ‘Justice is an act of love’, lawyers told at annual Red Mass27 Jan: With hundreds of judges, magistrates, barristers, solicitors and parliamentarians gathered at
Melbourne’s St Patrick’s Cathedral for the Red Mass, Cardinal Mykola Bychok told the assembled members of the judiciary and legal profession that their pursuit of justice is a “sacred task, one that touches the dignity of every person and shapes the moral character of our nation.” Read the full article |
| THE GUARDIAN Australia cancels visa of Jewish influencer who previously called for Islam to be banned 26 Jan: The government has cancelled the visa of a Jewish
influencer who has previously called for the ban of Islam and was booked to speak at several events in Australia. Read the full article |
During Australia’s appearance at the Universal Periodic Review on Monday, a few UN member nations recommended that Australia address discrimination on the ground of religion and belief, and some also called for the country to remove exemptions to anti-discrimination laws in religious schools. What do you think? Email your comments to:
editor@rationalist.com.au |
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| RATIONALE The Census Files: When the ABS made its decision
(Part 3) Si Gladman: Without any comprehensive quantitative data to measure the performance of the proposed religion question, due to the cancellation of the September Census Test, a number of ABS executives began raising concerns in email exchanges. Documents obtained by the Rationalist Society of Australia under freedom of information (FOI) laws reveal ABS executives discussing the risks of continuing with the
proposed new question design. Read the full article |
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| RATIONALE The Census Files: When the government missed the
deadline (Part 2) Si Gladman: The government’s delays in informing the ABS of its decision on the topics – coming two days after the given deadline of 21 August – had instant consequences for the major Census Test, which had been billed as the critical step that would provide the ABS with the information it needed on the performance of the new religion question. Read the full article |
| THE CONVERSATION When science discourages correction: How publishers profit from mistakes Douglas Sheil and Erik Meijaard: These cases, and too
many more, show that academia’s “correction machinery” is faltering. Few journals prioritise retractions or errata, and researchers who expose errors receive little encouragement. The academic economy rewards novelty over accuracy. Careers hinge on new papers, not careful corrections. Read the full article |
| THE AGE The Coalition is in tatters. The race is on to replace it in the centre
Rob Harris: Those still inside the Liberals describe a sense of political suffocation:
preselection dominated by branch activists, policy narrowed by culture-war signalling, influence concentrated among factions uninterested in metropolitan recovery. That mismatch has become the animating force behind renewed discussion of a centrist breakaway. Read the full article |
| THE FREETHINKER The Ayatollah, Theocratic Fragility, and the Rebellion of Iranian Women
Yamin Mohammad: Theocracy does not fear immorality; it fears independence. A woman
who chooses her clothing may choose her beliefs. A woman who demands rights may demand representation. And a woman who rejects infantilisation may reject the premise of clerical supremacy itself. Read the full article |
| THE GUARDIAN (UK) The Guardian view on the new archbishop of Canterbury
As the first woman to become the spiritual leader of the Anglican communion, Dame Sarah embodies a message
of diversity and inclusion to be celebrated. In a politically febrile period, those values will also need to be stoutly defended, both inside and outside the church. Read the full
article |
| ABC Former Japanese PM Shinzo Abe's killer motivated by 'disgust' at links to Unification Church
Brianna Morris-Grant: The implications of the assassination and the
allegations against the Unification Church have been high-profile and far-reaching. Connections between Japan's conservative political sphere and the controversial religious group were laid bare. Read the full article |
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