House of Representatives
Date: 28 July 2025
Speaker:
I call the Member for Fisher.
Andrew Wallace MP:
Thanks, Madam Deputy Speaker.
They say a country that doesn’t prioritise national security does so at its own peril. Nothing could be truer when it comes to this Albanese Labor Government.
Under the so-called stewardship of the former Attorney-General in the last Parliament, Labor gutted the Home Affairs portfolio. Why? Because this Government doesn’t take national security seriously. That much is very clear.
In the last Parliament, I had the privilege of serving as Deputy Chair of the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security – arguably the most important committee in this place. It’s a committee that safeguards the national security of all Australians.
What we saw under the previous Labor Government was a factional power grab – the dismantling of Home Affairs in favour of internal politics. The result? A complete failure of process and performance.
When we were in Government, the listing of a terrorist organisation could be done in two or three days. Under Labor, that same process has blown out to 60 days. Why? Because the information was ping-ponging between the Attorney-General and the Minister for Home Affairs. Critical national security decisions were delayed. Ministers weren’t taking responsibility. And Australians were put at risk.
A government that fails to prioritise national security puts 27 million Australians in harm’s way.
And the neglect doesn’t stop there.
After the 2022 election, it took Labor weeks to even form the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security. I watched it happen. And I sincerely hope we don’t see a repeat in this Parliament.
We are now in our second sitting week since the 2025 election. It’s been over three months. And still no PJCIS.
Let me be clear – the Prime Minister is responsible for forming that committee, in consultation with the Leader of the Opposition. So I say to the Prime Minister: get your skates on. National security cannot be left on the shelf.
We’ve already seen what happens when Labor drops the ball.
There was the NZYQ case. The Chinese military conducting naval operations right around the Australian coastline. A continuing pattern of strategic instability.
Yet this Government sends out mixed messages. One minute the Defence Minister warns we’re in the most geopolitically unstable period since 1945. The next minute, we’re sending the Prime Minister on a six-day charm offensive in China.
Australians deserve better. We need clarity. We need consistency. And above all, we need a Government that takes national security seriously.
END
