Whistleblower turned independent MP Andrew Wilkie could return to the secretive Parliamentary Joint Committee on Security and Intelligence.
A rare stoush has erupted in parliament’s high-powered intelligence and security committee over a government push that could see whistleblower turned independent MP Andrew Wilkie return to the secretive body.
The Coalition members of the committee said they felt “considerable regret” at writing a dissenting report on the issue, noting it was the first time in 17 years the committee had not reached a bipartisan consensus. Labor MPs argued the workload is too high and changing the limitations will allow for more flexibility.
It is also possible the government chooses another MP whom they deem to have the required level of responsibility and acumen. This could include a teal MP like Allegra Spender or Zoe Daniel.The senior Coalition MPs – including frontbenchers Simon Birmingham, Karen Andrews, Andrew Hastie, James Paterson and committee deputy chair Andrew Wallace – say the changes would diminish the opposition’s influence and allow crossbench or Greens MPs to join.
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