Media statement: The Albanese government’s new statutory Defence oversight committee will not provide greater accountability or transparency and is likely to give Australians a false sense of security, according to civil society group, Australians for War Powers Reform (AWPR).
The legislation to create a new Parliamentary Joint Committee on Defence was passed by Parliament today with both major parties voting in favour of the plan.
“There is no doubt that the Australian military needs far more scrutiny but this new committee will not achieve that,” said AWPR spokesperson and former Senator Andrew Bartlett.
“This committee looks likely to maintain the status quo by keeping military oversight in the hands of a select group of MPs from the two major parties. These MPs would be sworn to secrecy about any information the government allows them to see, on national security grounds.
Angus Taylor even demanded that for any MP to be suitable to serve on the committee they must hold certain views – They must support a higher military budget and they must fully support AUKUS. This is absurd and unreasonable.
More often than not the two major parties agree on defence issues and regularly seem to overlook serious project failures and massive budget blowouts.
Any genuine oversight plan would have greater transparency and acknowledge the benefits of including MPs with a diverse range of views and political perspectives.
The AUKUS debacle has shown us that when the government fails to include the Australian public in genuine debate about major projects, the result is a clear lack of support and a lack of faith in government itself. That $368 billion decision was foisted upon the public without warning or consultation, yet the government now expresses surprise at declining support in the polls.”
According to Daniel Flitton from the Lowy Institute the aim of the new Joint Defence Committee seems to be “co-option rather than openness”.
In an article entitled AUKUS doesn’t need protection from politics, Mr Flitton says “In defence debates, the problem is not so much politics but the lack of transparency – and that won’t be solved by setting up another committee able to hold hearings in secret”.
AWPR shares these concerns and is disappointed that the Albanese government has once again failed to actually improve transparency and accountability.
