Margaret Court to receive Australia Day honours

Controversial tennis great, Margaret Court, is set to be recognised in the Australia Day honours list.

The tennis champion already holds an Officer of the Order of Australia, but will be made a Companion in the General Division of the Order of Australia on Tuesday.

The names of those receiving honours are sent under embargo to media outlets in advance.

But a freelance journalist, who says he was made aware of the honour through “other sources”, not the embargoed information, today made the information public.

Premier Daniel Andrews has slammed the decision to honour the controversial tennis great.

“I don’t believe that she has views that accord with the vast majority of people across our nation, that see people particularly from the LGBT community as equal and deserving of dignity, respect and safety. I don’t believe she shares those views and I don’t believe she should be honoured,” he said.

“I don’t give out those gongs.

“That’s a matter for others. You might want to speak to them about why they think those views, which are disgraceful, hurtful and cost lives, should be honoured.”

I don’t want to give this person’s disgraceful, bigoted views any oxygen.

But when others insist on rewarding them with this country’s highest honour – I think it’s worth saying again:

Grand Slam wins don’t give you some right to spew hatred and create division.

Nothing does.

— Dan Andrews (@DanielAndrewsMP) January 22, 2021

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Image: Cameron Spencer / Getty