Peter Dutton (Dickson, Liberal Party, Minister for Immigration and Border Protection) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to sum up the Australian Citizenship Amendment (Allegiance to Australia) Bill 2015. I thank the honourable members for their contribution to this debate and acknowledge that it has attracted a lot of discussion both in this place and in the broader Australian community. Allegiance is a duty owed by all citizens to their sovereign or state. This bill emphasises the central importance of allegiance to Australia in the concept of citizenship.

Australia does face a heightened and complex security environment. In this environment, this bill will bolster Australia's national security arrangements, with measures to protect the community from persons who have clearly renounced their allegiances to Australia by engaging in serious terror related acts that harm Australians or Australian interests. This national security threat is unprecedented in our history, and the Australian government has struck the right balance in ensuring that dual nationals demonstrate their allegiance to our country if they wish to retain the privilege of Australian citizenship.

This bill is an important piece of legislation that will strengthen Australia's ability to confront the challenges posed by dual nationals who betray Australia by participating in serious terrorism related activities. The bill does this by providing the government with three mechanisms for responding to dual citizens who pose a terrorist threat to Australia. Firstly, it provides for automatic renunciation of citizenship from the time a person engages in terrorism related conduct. Secondly, it recognises automatic cessation of citizenship where a person engages in fighting for or in the service of a declared terrorist organisation. Thirdly, it provides the minister with the power to determine the loss of a person's citizenship if they have been convicted of a terrorism related offence.

I would like thank the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security for its work on this bill through its inquiry and recommendations. In particular, I would like to thank the chair, Dan Tehan, and the deputy chair, Mr Anthony Byrne, for their hard work and assistance. I would like to extend my thanks and appreciation to the department, in particular to Pip de Veau, Ian Deane and all of their team. Thanks also to my staff, who have provided great assistance, as well as others within this building.

The government has adopted the committee's recommendations to the fullest extent possible. These amendments provide this parliament with an appropriate level of scrutiny and oversight in the exercise of these important and sensitive new measures. In accordance with the recommendations of the PJCIS, the government has amended the bill further to include additional safeguards in the application of these new provisions. It has clarified that, in relation to my power as minister to make a determination to rescind a notice or not, a person can seek judicial review under section 75 of the Constitution or in the Federal Court of Australia under section 39B of the Judiciary Act 1903, if I choose to exercise that power. Also, a person can seek review on the basis on which a notice was issued, including: whether or not the requisite conduct was engaged in by the person, whether the person engaged in the conduct with the requisite intent and whether or not the person was a dual citizen at the time of the conduct. This implements recommendation 14 of the committee's report. In addition, the rules of natural justice will apply in instances where I decide to consider my power as minister in relation to the making of a determination to rescind a notice or not. The rules of natural justice include the hearing rule and the bias rule.

I would like to thank all members for their comments in the debate on this important bill. It is a measure of this bill's significance to the security of Australia that so many members of this House have contributed to this discussion. In conclusion, this bill is about protecting Australia and Australians at a time when we face a heightened and complex security environment. It has important new measures to deal with those who have engaged in conduct that is contrary to their allegiance to Australia. On that basis, I commend the bill to the House.

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