Nick Xenophon (SA, Independent) Share this | Hansard source

In relation to the most recent question and answer about the Law Council of Australia's submission: what does the Attorney-General say about the broad concerns that there are not adequate safeguards? For instance, in terms of the unauthorised disclosure: as I said in my second reading contribution, I acknowledge the need for secrecy. I acknowledge the importance of not disclosing the identity of an officer or associates of an operative because it would put their lives at risk. But for the penalty going from two years to five years for disclosing a special intelligence operation—under the current legislative regime it has been a two-year penalty for disclosure; a five-year penalty is a significant jump. Ten years in terms of putting others at risk, I can understand the rationale for that, but in terms of the general disclosure provisions, I do have a concern about them being without any safeguard of a public interest test or a public interest factor in respect of mitigation.

I would be grateful if the Attorney-General could either address it now in this general area of questioning or when the particular provisions are being considered. For instance, the Law Council considered that ASIO officers should be required to seek a new warrant in every instance where there is a significant change in circumstances:

…which could include a change in the premises subject to a search warrant (noting that a change in premises from a person’s home to a large workplace could have broad privacy implications), the identity of a person subject to a listening device or tracking device, or the range of activities needed to be authorised to execute a warrant.

The Law Council of Australia is not known for its radicalism. I think it has taken a prudent and cautious approach to this, with the balance of keeping Australians safe. I would the grateful if the Attorney-General could either address that particular concern now or in the context of the specific clauses when we deal with them.