The Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security (PJCIS) has recommended that Parliament pass the Counter-Terrorism Legislation Amendment (Foreign Fighters) Bill 2014, despite acknowledging the inadequate amount of time given for public consultation[1]. The Committee recommended a number of amendments that primarily concern improving oversight of the additional powers being granted to law enforcement and intelligence agencies, but also clarifying certain terms and reducing the allowable period for detention without notification and delayed notification search warrants. However, no substantial amendments have been recommended.

Pirate Party President Brendan Molloy commented: “Increased oversight will cushion the impact of these reforms, but not in any significant way. We’re still going to see people being detained for up to two hours without notification of family members or other persons. We’re still going to have search warrants where the occupier of the premises won’t be informed that their premises have been searched for up to 12 months afterwards. We’re still going to have people visiting certain areas declared guilty until proven innocent. And we’re still going to see the thresholds for law enforcement and intelligence agency action reduced.

“When you think about the potential effect this legislation has on all Australians — whether they are traveling or not — it is clearly disproportionate. It should not be forgotten that the disruption to rights, freedoms and liberties is being blamed on an estimated 160 Australians believed to be fighting overseas. There is no evidence that this small threat necessitates these insane reforms.”

Although the PJCIS recommended measures that would increase oversight, the Minister for Communications has introduced the Telecommunications Legislation Amendment (Deregulation) Bill 2014 which contains provisions reducing the obligations on telecommunications providers to report the number of requests received for access to stored information by law enforcement and intelligence agencies[2]. The explanatory memorandum says this is an effort to reduce compliance costs that do not provide effective consumer protection.

“No telecommunications providers are on record saying that this is an onerous requirement. This is not in any way an attempt to make things easier for them, it is a calculated attack on transparency. It is reducing any kind of independent monitoring of the level of surveillance Australians are being subjected to,” Mr Molloy concluded.

It is anticipated that a public consultation on the Government’s intended two-year mandatory data retention regime will be announced soon as the third tranche of national security reforms. The PJCIS has recommended that the Government open the next inquiry for longer, as previous Bills have been open for public comment for less than a fortnight each.

[1] http://www.aph.gov.au/~/media/02%20Parliamentary%20Business/24%20Committees/244%20Joint%20Committees/PJCIS/Foreign%20Fighters%20Bill/CommitteeReport_17Oct2014.pdf
[2] http://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2014/oct/22/telcos-may-no-longer-be-required-to-publish-lists-of-metadata-requests