Craig Laundy (Reid, Liberal Party, Assistant Minister for Industry, Innovation and Science) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I present a supplementary explanatory memorandum to the bill and seek leave to move government amendments (1) and (2) together.

Leave granted.

I move government amendments (1) and (2):

(1) Schedule 1, item 5, page 5 (line 1), omit "The Secretary", substitute "The Minister".

(2) Schedule 1, item 5, page 5 (line 4), omit "the Secretary", substitute "the Minister".

The Australian Border Force Act 2015 provides the regime administering the secrecy and disclosure of information set out in part 6. The Australian Border Force Amendment (Protected Information) Bill 2017 updates these secrecy and disclosure provisions. In particular, it proposes to repeal the definition of 'protected information', which currently covers any information obtained in a person's capacity as an entrusted person, and to substitute a new definition of 'immigration and border protection information'. Under the new definition of 'immigration and border protection information', only specific kinds of information would be covered by the secrecy and disclosure regime. It would be an offence to disclosure or make a record of such information, which is punishable by imprisonment for two years, but which may be identified in the future and which may require protection.

Such information may require protection more quickly than an amendment to the Australian Border Force Act 2015 would permit. Therefore, the bill includes a new power that would enable the secretary of the department to prescribe additional kinds of 'immigration and border protection information' by legislative instrument. This would enable a swift response to the need to protect information that is not one of the other kinds of information set out in the new definition.

The bill is currently the subject of an inquiry by the Senate Legal and Constitutional Affairs Legislation Committee. Questions have been raised in submissions to this inquiry and at the public hearing on the bill in relation to the secretary's power to prescribe additional kinds of information. As this has the potential to widen the application of the offence provision concerns have been raised that this power should not be exercised by an unelected public official. To address these concerns, the government proposes to amend this power so that it can only be exercised by the minister, and not the secretary. As the instrument prescribing new kinds of information is a legislative instrument, it will be subject to scrutiny by both houses of parliament and may be subject to disallowance.

Shayne Neumann (Blair, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Indigenous Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

We thank the government for this amendment. We think this is a sensible amendment. We do think the minister should be accountable to both houses of parliament. It's not the sort of information which we think a secretary of department or any public servant should be dealing with, no matter how honest, full of integrity and capable they are. This is something an elected person, a minister of the crown, should be dealing with and we thank the government for the amendment.

Ross Vasta (Bonner, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The question is that the amendment be agreed to.

Question agreed to.