Mr LINDSAY (10:42 PM) —Tonight I call for producers of depraved material on a CD such as the one I am holding to be held criminally liable for the corrupting influence such material may have on the people who purchase such a disc. Anyone, regardless of age, can buy this CD at a record store. After I opened the CD, I was stunned when I flipped through the CD's sleeve and saw the words of the lyrics of what is on the CD. They are printed inside in the jacket of the CD. The band is called Six Feet Under. The CD is called Maximum Violence. But the title still did not prepare me for the content. The CD is depraved. Its genre is called `death metal'. That promotes death, sexual violence and obscene language. It is a genre that encourages listeners to act out the fantasies of these so-called artists. It is a CD that brainwashes kids, convincing them that violence and death are cool and that they are the done thing in society. I listened to the first track, called Feasting on the Blood of the Insane, and this is a typical verse:

In deference to the parliament tonight, I have deleted the references to the expletives that were in that particular verse. It is just disgraceful. I can assure you that I find myself unable to repeat some of the words that are in other verses in other tracks on this CD. This despicable, degrading and dangerous product has one aim only—to shock and to shock again. So what is the price of notoriety? It is the impact on our society and particularly on our kids in a destructive and damaging way. Enough is enough—these bands should be held accountable for the worthless rubbish that they put in the music stores. They should be held accountable for irresponsibly influencing our children and they should be held accountable for the damage or violence that occurs as a result of this material—material that has no artistic merit at all.

Without regret, remorse or responsibility, this material is freely available to anyone of any age in a music store. The defence `We don't make them listen to it' has long expired. I propose that artists and producers responsible for this kind of material should be held liable for any criminal acts committed as a result of listening to this kind of matter and as a result of people being influenced by this depraved product. I propose no leniency and no exceptions. Bands like Six Feet Under should stand trial if their music is shown to have influenced others to commit criminal acts. They should stand in the dock and receive equal punishment. We all know the effect Charles Manson had on his zombie followers and the hideous effect his followers had on people like Sharon Tate and her unborn baby. I certainly have not forgotten those images. Although there is legislation in place controlling such filth, it is obvious that it is ineffective. The Commonwealth Classification (Publications, Films and Computer Games) Act 1995 is clearly allowing obscene material into local music stores—and at what cost? Clearly ineffective legislation that fails to safeguard our kids should be strengthened. It should address the real impact which materials such as this have on those who listen to it. If it does not, we as responsible citizens have failed; we have not acted to stop this crime.

There is only one solution: make these bands accountable for pushing the deceptive and subliminal messages that violence, sexual fetish and death are acceptable. As a legislator, I expect the parliament to take account of this kind of material and do something about it. I certainly do not want my kids or anyone else's kids to have Six Feet Under as a role model. So, as legislators, let us get tough and let us do something about it.