Adam Bandt (Melbourne, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. I refer to a report in today's Australian edition of the Guardian that the Australian Signals Directorate offered to share Australians' data with oversea spy agencies, possibly in breach of the law. Prime Minister, is this true? Is it happening, and will you put in place a full inquiry to ensure that no Australians' information, including medical, legal or religious information, is given to foreign spy agencies in this way?

Tony Abbott (Warringah, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I wish to make three points in response to the member. First, Australia will act to protect our national interest and to protect our citizens. We always have under governments of both persuasions; and, as far as I am concerned, we always will. We will act to protect our national security, and we will act to protect our national security using agencies such as ASIO and ASIS.

The second point I want to make is that our security agencies operate under very strict safeguards. They operate under the scrutiny and the supervision of the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security and under the scrutiny and the supervision of the Inspector General of Intelligence and Security. These are strong and effective safeguards.

The final point I wish to make is that it has not been the practice of any government of either persuasion to comment on operational matters.