By LACHLAN MOORHEAD
AUSTRALIA will be the target of a terrorist attack on the same scale as the Bali bombings unless the Federal Government moves ahead with the controversial “data retention” laws, according to Holt MP Anthony Byrne.
Mr Byrne in Parliament on Monday said Australia would “eventually and inevitably” see an event on its soil of the same magnitude as the bombings unless government agencies were given “all of the suite of powers” to deal with a terrorist threat.
“If a government is concerned and is making the right noises about being concerned about this nation’s security, it must give its agencies all of the suite of powers that they need to deal with the terrorist threat,” he said.
“It has not done so. I urge the Attorney-General, using this forum to have this conversation with him, to bring all of the suite of powers that the intelligence agencies have been asking for for some period of time, including with the previous government, to the parliament at its earliest opportunity.”
Attorney-General Geogre Brandis has previously been reluctant to indicate whether the government would support data retention, despite calls from ASIO and the Australian Federal Police.
But according to media reports Senator Brandis on Tuesday told Coalition MPs “this is the way the West is moving”, at a joint party room meeting.
The “data retention” laws would allow records of internet communications such as emails to be stored by providers for up to two years.
Mr Byrne said it was vital for data retention powers to be brought before the parliament “sooner rather than later”.
“I do not want to see data retention debated in this chamber and the chamber below after an event has occurred on Australia’s soil,” he said.
“I am deeply apprehensive – as I started my speech by saying – that inevitably and in the not too distant future we will have an event on this soil.
“I do not want to be part of parliament that reacts to an event; I want to be part of a parliament that puts the laws in place to prevent that event from taking place.”
