Richard Marles flags new national security legislation after China pilot probe

Richard Marles won’t tell the public whether China tried to recruit Australian pilots, as the government prepares to introduce tougher laws to protect state secrets.

Defence Minister Richard Marles says it will not be made public whether China had attempted to poach any former Australian Air Force pilots to train its own military.

Earlier, Mr Marles stopped short of confirming whether any instances of attempted poaching existed.

But he said the federal government would develop new national security laws to protect Australia’s military secrets.

The legislation will ensure it is illegal for Australian Defence Force personnel and veterans to disclose state secrets, including to foreign powers such as China.

The crackdown is one of the recommendations made by the Australian Federal Police and ASIO following their investigation into allegations Beijing had approached several former Defence members for recruitment.

Mr Marles commissioned the probe in November, tasking the AFP and the nation’s top spy agency with reviewing how well the Defence’s policies and procedures protect classified information.

“The thing I would want to give people a sense of comfort about is that the policies and the law that we do have in place now is robust,” he told reporters on Wednesday.

“Any person who comes into knowledge of an Australian secret by virtue of their work with the Commonwealth, including our Defence forces, who reveals that secret is breaking the law. That is the law right now.

“What I have said today is that we will be developing legislation as soon as we can to just make sure that the full breadth of that leaves no doubt about any of the information which is ancillary.”

When pushed about how many pilots may have been approached, Mr Marles said he was not going to put that on the public record, alluding to national security concerns.

“I don’t want to reveal that on the public record. And I think it’s important I don’t. We sought the report, (it’s) important for our nation, and the steps that it has asked us to do, we are doing.”

Defence Minister Richard Marles has flagged tougher laws for Australia’s state secrets. Picture: Martin Ollman / Getty Images

Speaking to 2GB radio on Wednesday morning, Mr Marles confirmed he had received the classified ASIO-AFP report.

He said the investigation had found Defence secrets were already subject to “very robust” policies and laws but had still made several recommendations aimed at strengthening these safeguards.

Mr Marles said every Defence member knew what was expected of them when it came to protecting classified information.

“But the report did recommend that we develop legislation to remove any doubt around the full breadth of the secrets that need to be maintained,” he said.

“And, yes, we will be developing that legislation.”

Mr Marles said the new laws would ensure there was “absolutely no doubt” about people’s responsibilities before, during and after dealing with Australia’s military secrets.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Defence Minister Richard Marles received another significant military review from former defence chief Angus Houston this week. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Gary Ramage

Opposition defence spokesman Andrew Hastie confirmed the Coalition would support the legislation, saying it had brought forward a similar Bill of its own in October.

He said Defence personnel should be prohibited from working for a foreign power that is “directly in competition with the Australian national interest”, but members and veterans needed clarity as they transitioned into civilian life.

Mr Hastie said the government should be more transparent about whether Australians had been approached by China to work for their military.

“I think more transparency would help everyone to understand the scope of the problem and also prevent further ADF personnel being targeted by foreign powers so that our secrets can’t be purchased and leveraged,” he told reporters.

The Albanese government received another significant review of Defence this week, with former defence chief Angus Houston handing down the final report of the Defence Strategic Review on Tuesday.

The classified review, which will be considered by the federal government over the coming weeks, is expected to recommend a major increase to Australia’s military capabilities.

Mr Marles told parliament the review – against the backdrop of the most complex strategic landscape the country has faced since the end of WWII – was the single most important re-evaluation of Australia’s strategic posture in the last 35 years.

Originally published as Richard Marles flags new national security legislation after China pilot probe