{"id":79822,"date":"2023-05-19T06:00:32","date_gmt":"2023-05-18T20:00:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/?p=79822"},"modified":"2023-07-21T16:22:18","modified_gmt":"2023-07-21T06:22:18","slug":"gatekeeping-the-parliamentary-intelligence-committee-wont-make-australia-safer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/gatekeeping-the-parliamentary-intelligence-committee-wont-make-australia-safer\/","title":{"rendered":"Gatekeeping the parliamentary intelligence committee won\u2019t make Australia safer"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/figure>\n

Reports<\/a> have emerged of a rare stoush over the usually cordially bipartisan Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security<\/a> (PJCIS). The source of the fracas is the Labor government\u2019s proposal<\/a> to expand the committee from 11 to 13 members and remove constraints on its composition that have mostly limited its membership to the two major parties. The Liberal Party has strongly opposed these changes.<\/p>\n

This is a worrying development for a committee that has largely avoided partisan bickering over the years, but it\u2019s important to remember that it\u2019s not the first time a government has proposed changes to the committee. In fact, since it was first appointed in 1988<\/a> by Bob Hawke\u2019s government, the committee\u2014then the Parliamentary Joint Committee on the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation\u2014has continually evolved in name, size and function.<\/p>\n

Currently, the PJCIS is one of 67 parliamentary committees<\/a> of the Australian parliament. Parliamentary committees consist of a group of members or senators appointed by one or both houses of parliament. Like other \u2018joint\u2019 committees, the PJCIS consists of members from both chambers.<\/p>\n

The primary role<\/a> of parliamentary committees is to do work better done by small groups, such as conducting inquiries, hearing witnesses, considering evidence, discussing matters in fine detail, and formulating reasoned conclusions.<\/p>\n

A further advantage is that many different committees can operate at one time, which enables many more matters to be dealt with in detail. This also offers the benefits of specialisation.<\/p>\n

However, unlike other parliamentary committees, the appointment of the members of the PJCIS is by resolution of the relevant house on the nomination of the prime minister or leader of the government in the Senate.<\/p>\n

The PJCIS\u2019s role is limited to overseeing the administration of the national intelligence agencies, addressing matters referred to it by the responsible minister or by a resolution of parliament, and reporting its recommendations.<\/p>\n

The committee is unique in that its oversight of Australia\u2019s intelligence agencies makes elevated levels of secrecy crucial to its work.<\/p>\n

The 13 committee members under the government\u2019s proposed legislation would comprise four from government ranks, two from each chamber; four from non-government ranks, again, two from each chamber; and five from either chamber. The requirement for a quorum would also increase from six to seven members. The bill doesn\u2019t amend the requirement that the government hold a majority.<\/p>\n

The PJCIS is constituted under the\u00a0Intelligence Services Act 2001<\/em>, which stipulates: \u2018The Committee is to consist of 11 members, 5 of whom must be Senators and 6 of whom must be members of the House of Representatives\u2019.<\/p>\n

Crucially, it has been described as a\u00a0\u2018closed shop\u2019<\/a>\u00a0to crossbenchers because the legislation refers to members of \u2018recognised political parties\u2019, effectively precluding minor parties and independents. A\u00a0notable exception<\/a>\u00a0was the independent MP Andrew Wilkie\u2019s inclusion<\/a> from 2010 to 2013 by Julia Gillard\u2019s Labor government.<\/p>\n

The proposal aims to allow the PJCIS greater flexibility, especially in covering absences. In its 2021\u201322 annual report<\/a>, the committee noted that its workload continued to be at high levels and that it conducted significantly more reviews and bills inquiries than in the previous reporting period.<\/p>\n

The PJCIS\u2019s composition no longer reflects the diverse composition of parliament today, and the government\u2019s recommendation would address this.<\/p>\n

But in a move that breaks bipartisan support, a dissenting report<\/a> by the opposition says that the PJCIS\u2019s members should only be from parties of government and that there\u2019s \u2018no evidence\u2019 that two extra members would improve parliamentary oversight.<\/p>\n

Moreover, it noted that the proposed amendments were not recommended by former director-general of security Dennis Richardson in his 2020 review<\/a> of the legal framework of the national intelligence community. However, that review did say that \u2018the Committee\u2019s composition is, and rightly remains, a matter for the Parliament\u2019.<\/p>\n

The PJCIS has had its detractors. Indeed, when the Hawke government first proposed the creation of the committee, the opposition Liberal Party<\/a> was initially against it.<\/p>\n

If the national intelligence community is accountable to the parliament, then it is the parliament\u2019s responsibility to provide robust and effective oversight mechanisms. Extra members with expertise in intelligence could provide greater confidence in the robust function of parliamentary oversight.<\/p>\n

All parliamentary committees, including the PJCIS, benefit from a diversity of perspectives and opinions. Indeed, a greater a level of contestability in the committee could lead to positive outcomes.<\/p>\n

It is in the Australian public\u2019s interest to ensure the PJCIS operates effectively, and new members will help it do that. Instead of weakening Australia\u2019s national security, the expansion of the PJCIS would strengthen its capacity to serve the national interest.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Reports have emerged of a rare stoush over the usually cordially bipartisan Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security (PJCIS). 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