Louise Markus (Greenway, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is addressed to the Attorney-General. Would the Attorney-General advise the House whether the government is taking appropriate measures to protect the Australian community from the threat of terrorism? Is the Attorney-General aware of other views on the relevance of those measures?

Philip Ruddock (Berowra, Liberal Party, Attorney-General) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the honourable member for Greenway for her question. The fact is that this government has demonstrated a very strong commitment to protecting Australia’s national security. The government has funded over 200 national security related measures at a total cost of more than $8 billion over 10 years. Our national security agency, ASIO, is being well resourced. Currently, there is a recruitment campaign which is attracting, as I think we have seen in some reporting today, the best and the brightest. While it is not appropriate to go into detail, some of these measures have resulted in successful prosecutions for terrorist related offences. The government has been taking firm measures because we are concerned about the terrorist attacks of September 11, the Bali bombings, in which Australians lost their lives and the London and Spain train attacks, where thousands of people have lost their lives over time. But it appears that there are other views.

The member for Fremantle, who is the senior vice-president of the national executive of the ALP, has written a new book. It is always interesting to look at her views. The member for Fremantle in a radio interview—I think yesterday—suggested that our concerns about terrorism are bordering on the irrational. She went on to suggest that security measures such as we have here are almost frivolous. She feels that we have overreacted to attacks such as September 11, the Bali bombings and the attacks on London and Spain. Why? Because more people are killed in road accidents. Her logic seems to be that, where attacks are deliberate and on our way of life and might be able to be dealt with, they are the same as road accidents, where there is often no deliberate intent of taking innocent lives. Yet we pay considerable attention to those matters. We run prominent campaigns on road safety and we have legislated for vehicle safety. Perhaps she says those matters are an overreaction or perhaps an invasion of civil liberties.

But I am pleased about the very high level of cooperation that we have between the Commonwealth and the states of Australia. Quite clearly, Labor premiers do not support her views. They have welcomed and embraced the antiterrorism laws that we have. I want to assure the House that this government will protect the community. We will take appropriate action to prevent terrorists achieving their role in Australia. And the Leader of the Opposition should be concerned that the member for Fremantle, a member of his own executive, appears to have given up the fight against terrorism, something which this government has not.