AFP grilled over decision to keep PM in dark on major terror investigation involving a caravan packed with explosives
The AFP has refused to answer why police failed to inform the Prime Minister about a major terror investigation.
National
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Australian Federal Police Commissioner Reece Kershaw has stonewalled MPs over why police failed to inform the Prime Minister about a major terror investigation involving a caravan packed with explosives.
The AFP boss declined to answer the question repeatedly when directly asked on Thursday by Nationals MP Llew O’Brien and Greens Senator David Shoebriedge.
“Was the Prime Minister briefed on that incident? Or the Attorney-General,’’ Mr O’Brien asked.
But the chair of the committee Labor Senator Hellen Polley then intervened and suggested it did not directly relate to the AFP’s annual report, which was the purpose of the committee hearing.
“I’m speaking about terrorism,’’ Mr O’Brien said.
“I’m seeking an answer to my question, if the prime minister or the Attorney General were briefed, and if so, when.”
But the AFP commissioner then refused to answer the question.
“What I would say is that that question relates to an ongoing joint counter terrorism team. investigation. And according to the briefings I’ve received that’s not the subject or purpose of today’s hearing,’’ Mr Kershaw said.
“And also, I am conscious that this is a public hearing.”
Amid controversy over why they left Anthony Albanese in the dark over the alleged Dural caravan bomb plot, a joint committee on law enforcement asked the AFP today to unpack who decides when ministers are alerted to developments.
However, MPs were straight-jacketed from asking direct questions about the ongoing investigation, instead unpacking the protocol to trigger a ministerial briefing.
It is well-established that in early February 2021, when Brittany Higgins approached police to tell them she was speaking to the media and wanted to re-open her complaint, that the information was passed on without her knowledge by the AFP to then Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton.
This followed a meeting of the Sensitive Investigations Oversight Board which governs so-called sensitive investigations into Australia’s national reputation, international relationships, economy or environment, the operation or administration of an Australian or foreign government or agency, legislature or judiciary, political or public policy through increased, prolonged or ongoing public or political discourse.
In the Brittany Higgins case, the SIOB determined Mr Dutton should be told that Ms Higgins, a Liberal staffer, had approached police and he subsequently informed the Prime Minister’s office about this contact.
Liberal leader Peter Dutton has described the decision to leave the PM in the dark as “inconceivable” and called for an inquiry as the Prime Minister refuses to say when he was told.
But Deputy Commissioner National Security Krissy Barrett explained today that counter-terrorism investigations and the trigger for ministerial briefings was not covered by the SIOB because it involved a joint investigation with NSW police,
As such it fell to a different committee, that includes NSW police, the AFP and intelligence agencies. It appears to be this committee that decided not to tell the PM or the Attorney-General.
“We have various governance and protocols that we rely on,’’ deputy commissioner Krissy Barrett said.
“Every matter is different. There are always unique considerations that need to be taken into consideration, and particularly in a joint space where we have to work very closely with partners. So it’s very difficult for me to answer that question.”
“So we have a sensitive investigations oversight board which has very strong governance in place that oversees sensitive investigations within the AFP, but when it comes to joint counter terrorism investigations, of course they’re not AFP only investigations, they do not sit under this SIOB.”
Call for an independent probe
Earlier it was revealed Liberal leader Peter Dutton has written to the Prime Minister to call for an independent inquiry into why Anthony Albanese was not briefed by the AFP or ASIO on a caravan packed with explosives and anti-Semitic material discovered in Dural, NSW.
News.com.au reported six days ago on January 31 that the Prime Minister, Attorney-General and national security committee were all “out of the loop” and left in the dark by the AFP over the alleged anti-Semitic caravan bomb plot for 10 days before the investigation was leaked to the media.
Mr Dutton sensationally claimed on Thursday that the Prime Minister was left out of the loop because police and security agencies did not trust his government not to leak it.
The AFP will have a chance to answer the question in parliament on Thursday, when AFP commissioner Reece Kershaw, Deputy Commissioner Crime Ian McCartney, Deputy Commissioner National Security Krissy Barrett and Stephen Nutt, the Assistant Commissioner Counter Terrorism and Special Investigations, appear to give evidence.
Mr Dutton fronted media to announce his inquiry, insisting it would not interfere with the ongoing investigation.
“I have written to the Prime Minister today asking for an independent inquiry in relation to the fact that the Prime Minister of our country wasn’t notified for nine days, 10 days of what was believed to be the biggest planned terrorist attack in our country’s history,” the opposition leader said.
“And it is inconceivable that the Prime Minister didn’t know about it.”
Asked when they were told of the threat again on Friday, the Prime Minister’s office referred questions to the AFP and NSW Police.
Earlier, Mr Albanese told Today host Karl Stefanovic the idea of an inquiry was “absurd” as the Prime Minister was pressed on by he wasn’t “absolutely livid” about not being notified about the alleged terror plot.
“Now you’re making an incredible assumption there, Karl,” Mr Albanese said.
“What’s important here is that we don’t play politics with national security.”
Senior government sources have confirmed that NSW Premier Chris Minns was swiftly notified of the shock find by NSW Police that could have resulted in a “mass casualty event” around January 19-20, but did not inform the Prime Minister or his cabinet until this week.
The protocol does not require the NSW Premier to tell the Prime Minister. This job would fall to the AFP or ASIO.
Despite the existing special investigations protocols that allow for police to brief Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus and the national security committee of cabinet it appears this did not occur until The Daily Telegraph broke the story on Wednesday.
Mr Minns also didn’t alert the national cabinet about the threat despite learning days earlier there was a caravan packed with explosives, with NSW government sources suggesting it would have automatically leaked.
Claiming that there was “nothing else that adds up” as to why the Prime Minister would not have been briefed for over a week, Mr Dutton is demanding a public inquiry.
“I’m not going to comment on discussions I’ve had with individuals out of agencies and people can draw their own conclusions based on their own experiences, but there’s nothing else that adds up as to why the Prime Minister would be kept in the dark for nine days when the authorities saw fit to brief the Premier,” Mr Dutton said.
“And he was open and honest about the fact he had been briefed on 20 January.
“How can we conceive of a position where the Prime Minister of our country is not aware of a planned mass terrorist attack that could have resulted in a 40-metre blast zone and hundreds of people losing their lives?
“I think they’re reasonable questions, not politically based.
“This is a matter of national security and it can’t be repeated and I’m not aware of any precedent for it before.
“The NSW Police have either made a deliberate decision not to advise the commonwealth so that the Prime Minister wasn’t advised because they were worried he was going to leak the information.
“Beyond that, there’s no other reasonable explanation.”
Shadow Home Affairs Minister James Paterson said the Albanese government was clearly “embarrassed” it was left in the dark.
“It’s very obvious that what is really happening here is that the Prime Minister is embarrassed,” he said.
“He’s embarrassed for one of two reasons. Either the AFP didn’t tell him and we have a catastrophic failure of our national security architecture on his watch and he doesn’t want to admit to that having happened. Or the AFP did tell him and he didn’t act.”
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