Page 4754 - Week 15 - Thursday, 21 November 1991
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The authority has a power to hold hearings. It can serve notices on people to attend and produce documents, and that power is used regularly. The very act of being subpoenaed to attend a National Crime Authority meeting, to be asked to produce documents, may have a significant effect on those persons compelled to attend before the authority. It is a very pervasive investigatory body in our society, and it is of great regret that the criminality within our community, and exterior to it, is such that we need to make these compromises with privacy issues and our civil liberties.
I believe that it is most unfortunate that the Liberal-Labor coalition, so evident for most of tonight, is at it again and that we are not going to see supported the very fine sentiments expressed by the Clerk of the Senate, Mr Harry Evans, and parliamentarians in the other house, who want to give the authority the scrutiny it deserves. I stress that it is not the type of scrutiny that would risk its operational activities, but the type of scrutiny that foreign affairs and defence and ASIO committees in the other house regularly exercise, to my knowledge.
It is all very easy for lay people who have never served in a quasi-intelligence network to think that all is well, that we can accept the assurances of senior public servants, advisers and political colleagues that it is okay. I am telling you in this chamber tonight that it would be right and proper for you to support this amendment. It will allow a properly constituted committee of this Assembly to conduct a constrained and appropriate inquiry.
Another risk that this Government has - that any government in the Territory has - is of being a tag-along government. We are new to the processes of parliament and it is very easy for us to be overawed and to say, "We will follow the other States" or "We are going to have a ministerial meeting". The fact is that the question of scrutiny of the NCA by parliamentary committees will never be resolved at the intergovernmental meeting. Mr Connolly mentioned that I had attended one; I can remember attending a couple. I attended meetings in November 1990 and in March this year, and I can assure Mr Connolly and this house that in the intergovernmental group there is not unanimity of outlook on a number of profound issues involving the management of the NCA.
Whilst those issues, which had almost come to breaking point following the departure of Mr Faris, QC, and the problems that afflicted the South Australian scene, have been quelled under the competent and prudent leadership of Mr Justice Phillips, he has gone and we are waiting on another appointment. I can assure you, from experience both nationally and internationally, that it would be a good step for this parliament to ensure that we had that power on our statute book. (Extension of time granted)
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