Media release – Day 2: Independent Review of Secrecy Laws: Is the balance right?

The effectiveness and proportionality of key secrecy laws will continue to be examined on Tuesday 26 March, the second day of public hearings held by the Independent National Security Legislation Monitor (INSLM).

Independent National Security Legislation Monitor Mr Jake Blight said day two of proceedings would include a focus on how secrecy laws impact the Australian media.

Witnesses on day two will include journalists Professor Peter Greste, representing the Alliance for Journalists Freedom and Mr Paul Farrell, for the Media Entertainment and Arts Alliance, Georgia-Kate Schubert from Australia’s Right to Know, senior officials from the Office of National Intelligence and the Attorney-General’s Department, and David Neal SC and Philip Boulten SC from the Law Council of Australia.

Summarising the relevant secrecy offences, Mr Blight explained, “In essence, there are four main offences, three for ‘Officials’ and one for ‘people external to government’ – this last offence includes journalists, academics and civil liber􀆟es groups and perhaps unsurprisingly, it has been the subject of some detailed submissions”.

“Excessively wide or uncertain secrecy laws can undermine trust in government and unreasonably impact the important role of a free press and civil society groups. This review is considering these issues and will make recommendations to ensure the balance is right,” Mr Blight said.

Mr Blight said day two would also provide an opportunity for experts from the Law Council of Australia and Attorney-General’s Department to provide their perspectives.

“Hearing from policy and law experts will help in assessing whether the current criminal offences are the most proportionate response to the risk posed by the disclosure of truly harmful information, or whether the current laws are unnecessarily broad, complex and uncertain,” Mr Blight said.

In January 2024, as part of the review, Mr Blight released a detailed issues paper which identified 35 issues for consideration, with additional maters to be identified and assessed throughout the course of the review.

“Secrecy offences have an important role to play in protecting national security and other critical national interests. There is some information which in the wrong hands could genuinely harm those interests”.

“The challenge is in enabling harmful disclosures to be prosecuted, but in a way that is proportionate and so that the law does not criminalise disclosures which are not harmful and that the offences are consistent with rule of law principles including that the law should be certain and knowable,” Mr Blight said.

Mr Blight will be taking questions from those present at approximately 1:15pm.

The INSLM has received 19 submissions following the announcement of the INSLM review in January 2024.

A copy of Mr Blight’s opening statement from the first day of the public hearing

The Program for day two of this INSLM Public Hearing, which is being held at the Hotel Realm in Canberra, can be found on the Secrecy Review page.

Members of the public and media organisations are welcome to attend the public hearing or to watch as it is streamed live.

A transcript of the public hearing will be made available on the INSLM website in due course.

Read the written submissions to the INSLM Secrecy Review

The final report is expected to be tabled in June 2024.