Mandurah MLA Roger Nicholls warned that what he described as traditional family and Christian values were being threatened in Australia, during an address to the International Convention on the Rights of the Child.

Nicholls said the convention represented a threat to the rights of parents to raise their children as they saw fit, arguing that government involvement could interfere with family upbringing and encourage children to challenge parental authority.

He claimed children were increasingly being taught that parents and other adults could not necessarily be trusted, while the traditional family structure and Christian moral values were being weakened.

Nicholls also criticised the decriminalisation of homosexuality and government spending on programs presenting homosexuality as a legitimate option, arguing that children were being influenced away from what he considered traditional family values.

He said Australia's reputation for fairness and concern for children had been overshadowed by what he described as a "fast-buck, soft-option mentality", and called for the family to remain at the centre of society.

Nicholls also referred to the Australian Bill of Rights, which had previously been abandoned by the Federal Government following community opposition, and raised concerns about the proposed ratification of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.

The article reported that the convention's principles were incorporated in a human rights and equal opportunities bill that had passed both houses of Federal Parliament. Nicholls said opponents were being encouraged to write to the Prime Minister protesting Australia's ratification of the treaty.