NOBODY IS WATCHING THE WATCHERS

Labor and Coalition reject increased parliamentary scrutiny of intelligence agencies 

The Coalition Government and Labor Opposition have declined to support Centre Alliance plans to amend Australia’s national security laws to extend parliamentary scrutiny into the operations of Australia’s national security and intelligence agencies. 

“Australia’s ten national security and intelligence agencies employ more than 7,000 people and spend well over $2 billion each year while they accumulate massive amounts of data at home and abroad," said Senator Rex Patrick. "Greater parliamentary scrutiny is long overdue and it's disappointing that both the Government and the Opposition did not support the amendment.

"It appears the Government doesn't want any greater scrutiny of what they are doing in the national security field. Curiously, the Labor Opposition decided to vote against the Centre Alliance amendments - despite having a Bill before the Senate that proposes similar oversight extensions."

At present the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security (PJCIS) is prohibited by the Intelligence Services Act 2001 from reviewing intelligence-gathering priorities and operations of Australian intelligence agencies, or the assessments and reports they produce. The Committee is barred by legislation from examining sources of information, operational activities and methods, or any operations that have been, are being or are proposed to be undertaken by intelligence and national security agencies. 

Significantly, the PJCIS is also prohibited from reviewing the privacy rules made by Ministers that regulate the communication and retention by agencies of intelligence information concerning Australian persons.

“The PJCIS can’t properly hold these agencies accountable if the Parliament continues to ban its own Committee from reviewing their operational performance,” said Rex. "The amendment proposed by Centre Alliance would have allowed appropriate oversight, such as that practised by one of our closest intelligence partners in Canada."

"The Opposition indicated they couldn't support the Centre Alliance amendments because they didn't have sufficient time to consider them. Centre Alliance will be moving these amendments again in the context of other national security legislation that will pass through the Senate shortly. At that time, I will look forward to the support of the Opposition."