Terri Butler (Griffith, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

It is an offence under section 478.1 of the Criminal Code to cause unauthorised access to restricted data in certain circumstances. The section titled, 'Unauthorised access to, or modification of, restricted data,' provides:

(1) A person is guilty of an offence if:

(a) the person causes any unauthorised access to, or modification of, restricted data; and

(b) the person intends to cause the access or modification; and

(c) the person knows that the access or modification is unauthorised …

The penalty is two years imprisonment. Section 70(1) of the Crimes Act provides:

A person who, being a Commonwealth officer, publishes or communicates, except to some person to whom he or she is authorized to publish or communicate it, any fact or document which comes to his or her knowledge, or into his or her possession, by virtue of being a Commonwealth officer, and which it is his or her duty not to disclose, shall be guilty of an offence.

The penalty is two years imprisonment, and there are accessorial liability provisions in the relevant legislation that apply.

It has been alleged in a recent search warrant that, between 23 March and 12 April 2012, a Mr James Ashby accessed restricted data without authorisation and communicated the material to a third party. The restricted data was the then Speaker's official diary. In 2012, selected parts of the official diary of the then Speaker were leaked to the media. In December 2012, the member for Moreton wrote to the Australian Federal Police calling for an investigation. One of the allegations into which the member for Moreton sought an investigation was that the now minister had procured Mr James Ashby and another person to provide unauthorised access to the then Speaker Mr Slipper's official diary.

In September 2014, the now Special Minister of State appeared on 60 Minutes. During that 60 Minutes appearance, the now Special Minister of State admitted to asking Mr James Ashby to obtain a copy of the then Speaker Peter Slipper's diary. That admission was and remains a matter of great notoriety. The now Prime Minister would have been aware of that admission at the time it was made and at the time that he appointed the now minister as Special Minister of State. Following that interview, the member for Moreton wrote again to the Australian Federal Police in respect of the matter. In October 2015, the Australian Federal Police confirmed to the member for Moreton that the investigation was ongoing.

On 17 November 2015, the Australian Federal Police raided the Special Minister of State's home. The search warrant referred to section 478 of the Criminal Code and section 70 of the Crimes Act, amongst other provisions. The raid was part of an ongoing investigation as to whether the now minister had committed an offence by procuring Mr James Ashby to obtain a copy of the diary of the then Speaker, Mr Peter Slipper. The Special Minister of State has confirmed that the raid occurred. On 19 November, the now Prime Minister, notwithstanding that he was aware of the earlier admission, and notwithstanding that he was aware of the raid that had occurred two days previously, said of the minister:

… at this stage there is nothing to suggest that Mr Brough should stand aside or do anything of that kind.

Paragraph 1.2 of the Statement of Ministerial Standardsprovides:

In recognition that public office is a public trust, therefore, the people of Australia are entitled to expect that, as a matter of principle, Ministers will act with due regard for integrity, fairness, accountability, responsibility, and the public interest, as required by these Standards.

The Statement of Ministerial Standardsfrom which I have just quoted is a document published under the name of this current Prime Minister, the member for Wentworth, this year. The Prime Minister would be well aware of the contents of the document that has been published under his own name. He will also be well aware, because it is recorded in detail in House of Representatives Practicethat in the history of this parliament there have been a number of occasions on which ministers have resigned or taken a leave of absence when allegations had been made against them and were being investigated, while investigations were underway. In some cases, those ministers have been exonerated and have returned to their ministerial responsibilities.

If we are to address the grave democratic deficit that exists in this country, the scepticism and open cynicism that people have about their political representatives, and the fact that large numbers of people, including young people, are sceptical about the health of our democracy, then integrity is of utmost significance. It is important for the future of our democracy that this government act with integrity. Accordingly, the Special Minister of State ought stand aside until this investigation is resolved.

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