Michelle Rowland (Greenway, Australian Labor Party, Attorney-General) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Curtin. I acknowledge the constructive approach she has taken to moving these amendments and note her long advocacy for reform in this area.

The government will not be supporting these amendments. First, the proposed amendment to change the harm threshold is inconsistent with the recommendations of the AGD secrecy review, which recommended a broader offence that captured disclosures prejudicial to the working of government, including scenarios akin to the PwC incident. The proposed amendment would not sufficiently close gaps in secrecy laws that were identified following the PwC incident. The essential public interests in the list contained in the proposed amendments are matters covered by other general secrecy offences in the Criminal Code and in specific secrecy offences in other legislation.

Secondly, notwithstanding the importance of establishing clear and robust safeguards around the prosecution of journalists, the government is not convinced that a periodic review as contemplated by the amendment is necessary given the infrequency with which secrecy offences are prosecuted. An independent statutory review is costly, and a five-yearly review may not present particularly useful insights for the parliament.

The government remains committed to improving protections for press freedom and will consider whether further amendments are necessary in the future.

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