House of Representatives

Second Reading Speech

Mr Hunt (Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for the Environment and Heritage)

I move:

That this bill be now read a second time.

The Intelligence Services Legislation Amendment Bill 2005 will assist in strengthening the contribution of sound intelligence to government decision making and operations.

Effective intelligence arrangements, underpinned by sound accountability mechanisms, are fundamental to a range of key national priorities including countering terrorism, reducing the threat of weapons of mass destruction and proliferation, supporting Defence Force operations, and protecting Australian sovereignty.

This bill will implement the legislative recommendations made by Mr Philip Flood AO in his report last year on the inquiry into Australian intelligence agencies.

It will also put in place a range of amendments to intelligence related legislation which were identified as a result of the government's review of the operation of the Intelligence Services Act 2001 (ISA) since that legislation came into force in October 2001.

This review was recommended by the former Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security and was coordinated by the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet.

The ISA established legislative bases for the Australian Secret Intelligence Service (ASIS) and the activities of the Defence Signals Directorate (DSD).

The government announced in July last year that it had accepted all of the recommendations of the Flood inquiry, with the exception of the proposal to change the name of the Office of National Assessments (ONA). This bill will implement all of the legislative recommendations from that inquiry by:

1.

extending the mandate of the Parliamentary Joint Committee on ASIO, ASIS and DSD (PJCAAD) to all of Australia's intelligence agencies-that is, it will cover ONA, DIO and DIGO on the same basis as it presently covers ASIO, ASIS and DSD;

2.

formalising the functions and ministerial accountabilities of DIGO and amending the Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security Act 1986 to include scrutiny of DIGO on a basis comparable with that which applies to DSD and ASIS;

3.

extending the mandate of the Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security to allow the inspector-general to initiate inquiries at his or her own discretion into matters relating to ONA and DIO without ministerial referral, consistent with the inspector-general's jurisdiction in respect of ASIO, ASIS and DSD. The inspector-general should also conduct a periodic review of ONA's statutory independence;

4.

amending the Office of National Assessments Act 1977 to remove the references to two assessment boards-the National Assessments Board and the Economic Assessments Board-to reflect the reality that there is only one National Assessments Board which covers strategic, political and economic issues, but with provision for different composition according to subject matter, and to strengthen ONA's community coordination role in section 5(1)(d).

A major outcome of this bill will be the provision of a legislative basis for the activities of the Defence Imagery and Geospatial Organisation (DIGO). DIGO is a defence agency established in November 2000.

While it is a relatively new organisation, Australia's involvement in imagery intelligence and topography is not new.

These activities have been an integral part of Australia's defence for many years.

DIGO was created within Defence to better realise increasing synergies in the exploitation of imagery and other data to produce intelligence and geospatial information.

Like ASIS and DSD, DIGO has a foreign intelligence focus; however, its role is not limited to that.

The bill sets out the five functional categories of DIGO's work, as follows. Under its first function, DIGO obtains imagery and geospatial data to produce intelligence relating to people or organisations outside Australia. Under its second function, DIGO obtains imagery and geospatial data to produce intelligence to support ADF exercises, training and operations, wherever they may occur.

This function includes providing data and material in support of ADF decision making for targeting.

Under its third function, DIGO obtains imagery and geospatial data to produce intelligence to support Commonwealth and state authorities in their national security role.

Under its fourth function, DIGO communicates the material produced as a result of the exercise of the functions described above, in accordance with the requirements of the government.

Under its fifth function, DIGO provides non-intelligence products and assistance to Commonwealth and state government agencies, as well as to approved non-government bodies and foreign governments. Non-intelligence products include routine topographic data and products. Assistance in search and rescue and response to natural disasters is specifically included in this function to acknowledge the important non-intelligence work done by DIGO in this area.

The review of the ISA's operation was prompted by advice from the former Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security that this act's application had shown that some refinement was needed.

In addition, increased public interest in the activities of intelligence agencies and the ability of some agencies to impede the privacy of Australians warranted an examination and finetuning of accountability mechanisms at a level of detail that was not possible during the time available to the Flood inquiry.

Mr Flood was aware of plans for this subsequent review.

In August 2004, the honourable member for Fadden, Mr David Jull, on behalf of the PJCAAD, which he chairs, proposed to the government that it consider a number of changes to that committee.

These proposals included an increase in the size of the committee and other adjustments to help the PJCAAD respond to its increasing workload. The government agreed that these proposals would be considered in the context of the review of the ISA.

The government has agreed in response to the review that the committee's membership will be increased from seven to nine.

A position of deputy chair will also be established and the committee empowered to establish subcommittees when required.

In keeping with current arrangements, the committee will not have a mandate to review the content or conclusions of assessments or reports made by DIO or ONA, or review the sources of information on which such assessments or reports are based.

The committee will not have a mandate to review the coordination and evaluation activities undertaken by ONA.

Following the review of the bill by the PJCAAD in September 2005, the government also agreed with the committee's recommendation that the bill be amended so that it does not stipulate that the deputy chair must be a member of government.

The government is conscious that the committee has operated well under a spirit of bipartisanship and that the introduction of a deputy chair position should both recognise and endeavour to preserve this cooperative goodwill. However, the amendment proposed by the government will also ensure that, if the chair of the committee is not present at a meeting of the committee where a question is to be decided by voting or is absent for a period of more than one month, then the members present are to appoint a government member to preside at a meeting.

That member so appointed may exercise, in relation to the meeting, any powers of the chair as acting chair.

Other significant amendments incorporated in the bill include clarification of the roles and functions, and ministerial authorisation regimes for intelligence collection by ASIS and DSD.

One major effect of these changes is to extend the protections that the legislation currently affords to Australians overseas to Australians in Australia.

Since the act was passed, the extension of those protections has been done through ministerial direction. In the government's view, it is important that those protections be specifically set out in the legislation itself.

The bill also repeals the current definition of 'permanent resident'. The new definition maintains the link to the ASIO Act with regard to a natural person, but redefines the understanding of a body corporate.

For the purposes of the ISA, a 'permanent resident' would include a body corporate incorporated under a law in force in a state or territory, but would exclude a body corporate whose activities are controlled, or could be controlled, by a foreign power or natural person who is neither an Australian citizen nor a permanent resident.

Another significant change will be adjustments to the ministerial authorisation regime to allow a minister responsible for a different intelligence agency to authorise intelligence collection activities in instances where there is a need for emergency collection and the responsible minister for an agency is not readily contactable or available. These other ministers will be the Prime Minister, the Minister for Defence, the Minister for Foreign Affairs and the Attorney-General.

A further change will give new authority to ASIS, DIGO and DSD to communicate incidentally obtained intelligence in defined circumstances.

The bill also proposes a common definition of 'staff member' for the intelligence collection agencies that clarifies the status of consultants or contractors, or persons made available to work with an agency by another Commonwealth or state authority.

Other changes include a provision which expressly provides for the Inspector-General to consult with the Commonwealth Ombudsman to avoid a duplication of effort.

A similar provision currently exists in the IGIS Act in respect of the Auditor-General.

Another provision will establish a clear right for the inspector-general, as part of monitoring ASIO's activities, to access any place being used to detain a person under a warrant issued for the purposes of questioning in accordance with division 3 of part III of the ASIO Act.

Other amendments concern an inspector-general inquiry which directly concerns the head of an agency. These changes will allow the Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security the option of advising the secretary of the Department of Defence, in relation to the Defence intelligence agencies, or the relevant minister in the case of the other intelligence agencies, of an inquiry and to use these channels to consult on a draft inquiry report.

A further change will enhance accountability arrangements for any use by the Director-General of Security of his power, under the ASIO Act, to authorise intelligence collection for up to 48 hours in advance of ministerial authorisation.

This amendment will require the Inspector-General to be advised within three working days of each case where this authority is exercised.

A similar change will be made to the authorities of the Director-General of Security under the Telecommunications (Interception) Act 1979.

The bill also includes amendments intended to achieve consistent treatment of the intelligence agencies under the Freedom of Information Act. I commend the bill to the House and present the revised explanatory memorandum.

Leave granted for second reading debate to continue immediately