"The Prime Minister says that they will take their time to get it right. No matter how long they take, they cannot get right wanton infringement of the rights of Australians." Loading Liberty Victoria president Jessie Taylor warned of an "extraordinary incursion into free speech" in Mr Morrison's stated intention when the right to protest and boycott was at the heart of most liberal democracies. "This represents a further significant erosion of that right, from a prime minister whose rhetoric around the right to protest is beginning to sound feverish," said Ms Taylor, also a lecturer at Monash University. "The notion that a government could outlaw a boycott is legally questionable and morally dubious."

The Human Rights Law Centre said the Prime Minister's announcement was another sign of an "undemocratic trend" to undermine the right to protest, often "at the behest" of big companies. "From ending slavery to stopping apartheid, boycott campaigns have played a critical role in achieving many social advances that we now take for granted," said the centre's executive director, Hugh de Kretser. Loading Replay Replay video Play video Play video Mr Morrison declared he was working on legal measures to outlaw the "indulgent and selfish practices" of protest groups who tried to stop major resources projects. The Prime Minister warned of an "insidious" danger to the economy if the targets grew to include gas projects, abattoirs or airlines.

"Now, we will take our time to get this right. We will do the homework and we're doing that right now. But we must protect our economy from this great threat," he told a resources industry meeting in Brisbane. Loading Environmental campaigners have put pressure on banks to halt lending to the Adani coal mine in Queensland, while other companies supplying the project with goods and services have also been subject to consumer activism. Mr Morrison acknowledged he could not force a company to provide services to another, making it clear his new law would punish the protesters rather than the companies that gave in to their pressure. Business leaders backed the proposal and voiced their frustration with groups including Extinction Rebellion, which has brought traffic to a halt at some of its protests recently.

Orica chief executive Alberto Calderon said he was "shocked at the degree of violence and hatred" from protesters at events this week, calling for civility and saying climate change needed to be addressed. Business Council of Australia chief Jennifer Westacott also backed the proposal by saying that creating jobs and protecting the environment were not mutually exclusive. "We support the Prime Minister's efforts to prevent activists unfairly targeting responsible businesses who are investing, creating new jobs and playing a critical role in the supply chains that underpin a strong economy," she said. Australian Forest Products Association chief executive Ross Hampton said his industry had been the subject of secondary protest activity for many years, adding this could be stopped by amending Section 45DD Competition and Consumer Act 2010.

"The forest industry welcomes robust policy debate and peaceful, lawful protests but when protest actions are hurting innocent Australian businesses, we can't afford to stand by and let this happen," he said. But Atlassian co-founder Mike Cannon-Brookes said the government plan was "selfish and indulgent" because it promoted the wants of "coal barons" rather than the many people who wanted action on climate change. Protests are because your government is doing nothing meaningful. Atlassian co-founder Mike Cannon-Brookes "Protests are because your government is doing nothing meaningful," he wrote. Labor legal affairs spokesman Mark Dreyfus said Mr Morrison was trying to "distract attention" from the government's failures on energy and climate change.