National Security Legislation Amendment (Comprehensive Review and Other Measures No. 1) Bill 2021

✦ Plain-English Summary

Official Description

Amends the: Intelligence Services Act 2001 to: enable the Australian Secret Intelligence Service (ASIS), the Australian Signals Directorate (ASD) and the Australian Geospatial-Intelligence Organisation (AGO) to undertake activities to produce intelligence where there is, or is likely to be, an imminent risk to the safety of an Australian person; enable ASIS, ASD and AGO to seek ministerial authorisation to produce intelligence on a class of Australian persons who are, or are likely to be, involved with a listed terrorist organisation; enable ASD and AGO to seek ministerial authorisation to undertake activities to produce intelligence on an Australian person, or class of persons, where they are assisting the Australian Defence Force in support of military operations; amend the requirement for ASIS, ASD and AGO to obtain ministerial authorisation to produce intelligence on an Australian person to circumstances where the agencies seek to use covert and intrusive methods which include methods for which the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO) would require a warrant to conduct inside Australia; clarify the requirement for ASIS, ASD and AGO to seek ministerial authorisation before requesting a foreign partner agency to produce intelligence on an Australian person; remove the geographic limit requiring that ASIS activities undertaken to support ASIO in the performance of its functions be conducted outside Australia; provide that, for the purposes of carrying out its non-intelligence functions, AGO is not required to seek ministerial approval for cooperation with authorities of other countries; clarify the meaning of authorities of other countries; and make technical amendments; Office of National Intelligence Act 2018 to require the Office of National Intelligence to obtain Director-General approval when undertaking cooperation with public international organisations; Australian Passports Act 2005 and Foreign Passports (Law Enforcement and Security) Act 2005 to extend the period for passport suspension and foreign travel document surrender from 14 to 28 days; Criminal Code Act 1995 to extend immunity provided to staff of ASIS and AGO for computer-related acts done outside Australia to acts which inadvertently affected a computer or device located outside Australia; Intelligence Services Act 2001 , Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security Act 1986 and Office of National Intelligence Act 2018 in relation to privacy rules of ASIS, ASD, AGO and Defence Intelligence Organisation; Crimes Act 1914 to allow ASD to participate in the assumed identities scheme; and Australian Security Intelligence Organisation Act 1979 and Telecommunications (Interception and Access) Act 1979 to: approve a class of persons to exercise the authority conferred by an ASIO warrant; clarify the permissible scope of classes; and introduce certain record-keeping requirements.

Committee Referrals

Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security; Senate Standing Committee for the Scrutiny of Bills; Parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights

No formal division recorded

This bill passed by voice vote — parliament agreed without calling a formal count. A division is only recorded when a member explicitly requests one.

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