Dreyfus' final humiliation
Leading barrister Bret Walker SC argues moving ASIO and the AFP back to Home Affairs weakens oversight and diminishes the rule of law.
The shifting of the Australian Federal Police and ASIO into the Home Affairs portfolio represents a final humiliation for recently ousted attorney-general Mark Dreyfus.
Dreyfus railed against the creation of a super-ministry in 2017 that brought together border control, immigration and national security, arguing both agencies should be subject to more rigorous legal oversight.
The move was driven by former immigration department head Mike Pezzullo, who relentlessly lobbied the Turnbull government after Tony Abbott rejected the plan during his prime ministership.
In a 2016 text message to Liberal Party operative Scott Briggs, Pezzullo said: “Home Affairs is going well except AGD [Attorney-General’s Department] needs to be put to the sword.”
