Joint Submission to the Secrecy Provisions review by the Attorney-General's Department
In a joint submission to a review of secrecy provisions by the Attorney-General’s Department, the Human Rights Law Centre, Transparency International Australia and Griffith University's Centre for Governance and Public Policy have called on the Albanese Government to swiftly repeal the worst excesses in Australian secrecy laws and strengthen safeguards for whistleblowing and public interest journalism.
The joint submission’s recommendations include:
The introduction of a serious harm requirement across all secrecy offences
Reform to minimise application to non-public servants
A reduction in penalties to ensure proportionality
Robust exemptions for whistleblowers, human rights defenders and journalists