Scott Ludlam (WA, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That the Senate—

(a) notes that

(i) the Attorney General and the Prime Minister have made repeated reference to a regime of parliamentary oversight comprising the Parliamentary Joint Standing Committee on Intelligence and Security when commenting on recent scandals pertaining to the surveillance activities of Australia's security and intelligence agencies, and

(ii) the Joint Standing Committee on Intelligence and Security has not been re established by the Government; and

(b) calls on the Government to immediately establish the Parliamentary Joint Standing Committee on Intelligence and Security.

I seek leave to make a brief statement.

Stephen Parry (Tasmania, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Leave is granted for one minute.

Scott Ludlam (WA, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Since this parliament was re-established there have been a wide variety of issues reported in the media and discussed in this place relating to surveillance, intelligence agencies, national security and those sorts of matters. Each time I rise to bring attention to these matters, government and opposition have reminded me that the principal oversight of these agencies and matters in Australia is provided through the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security. That would be wonderful if such an entity existed, but I rise—and this is the purpose of this motion—to point out to the Senate that, as it stands, this committee has not yet been stood up. This government has been in power for more than three months, but this committee still does not exist. I thought it had actually disappeared off the website with some of Mr Abbott's speeches. It has been brought back; so should this committee. I commend this motion to the chamber.

Mitch Fifield (Victoria, Liberal Party, Assistant Minister for Social Services) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I seek leave to make a short statement.

Stephen Parry (Tasmania, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Leave is granted for one minute.

Mitch Fifield (Victoria, Liberal Party, Assistant Minister for Social Services) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Ludlam's motion is wrong because it is based on a false premise, and the government will not be supporting it. The Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security exists under statute per section 28(1) of the Intelligence Services Act 2001. Therefore, the joint committee has already been established. The government is consulting on its membership in accordance with the statutory requirements and will finalise this process shortly.

Stephen Parry (Tasmania, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The question is that the motion moved by Senator Ludlam be agreed to.