Scott Ludlam (WA, Australian Greens) Share this | Hansard source

I take your point, Senator Brandis, and it is not something that we sought to bring forward by way of a committee stage amendment. It is something that, I believe, if those who have spent time drafting the Alert Digest thought it worth raising and seeking a specific advice, which you are not able to provide us with,—I well understand now that it will be provided later in the day—then I think it is worth canvassing in some detail. If we are not able to have that information in writing, the only way for us to get to it while we are at this stage of the debate is to put these questions to you now. Minister, I wonder whether you could satisfy for us—and I put this question to you in the form of words that it has been put by the scrutiny committee, which said:

… the committee seeks the Attorney-General's advice as to whether consideration has been given to these matters and whether there are ways in which to address them. The committee is also interested in whether it would be appropriate to provide legislative guidance as to any parameters on the class/es of persons to whom authorisation can be granted and whether the option to authorise classes of persons could be limited to emergency situations (those involving 'very short notice').

That is one particular remedy that the scrutiny committee have proposed. In your written response to the committee have you considered that possibility?