ASIO head Mike Burgess also is alarmed by rising rates of anti-government sentiment and risk of violence fuelled by the pandemic.
, revealing ASIO recently foiled a plot by an overseas government to plant candidates into an Australian parliament.
“While threat to life will always be a priority for ASIO, our attention and resourcing is increasingly being directed towards threats to Australia’s way of life,” Mr Burgess said.With Australians to go to the polls in May, Mr Burgess said a “surprising” range of countries were attempting to interfere in Australia’s democracy by taking advantage of the open and accessible nature of our political system.
He did not name the jurisdiction and political party targeted, nor the foreign government behind the scheme. Western Australia and Tasmania had state elections last year, while South Australia has its poll in March.But he said a wealthy person, dubbed the “puppeteer”, had maintained direct and deep connections with a foreign government and its intelligence agencies despite roots in Australia.
He speculated if some of the candidates had succeeded, the employee would have recommended hiring certain people aligned to the foreign government as political staffers to shape policymaking and identify and recruit other politicians. ”My message for any potential victims on these sites is a familiar one – if it seems too good to be true, it probably is,” Mr Burgess said.
Australia Latest News, Australia Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Tourism chief fires warning as international border reopening date unveiledAustralia has been “a little bit ridiculed” around the world for its strict COVID-19 border closures and rules, and could fail to regain its share of global tourism dollars even when the border reopens, the head of Tourism Australia has warned tourism
Read more »
Tourism chief fires warning as international border reopening date unveiledAustralia has been “ridiculed” around the world for its strict COVID-19 border closures and rules and could fail to regain its share of global tourism dollars, Tourism Aust chief warns
Read more »
Queensland anti-corruption watchdog backs calls for increased independence to stop political interferenceQueensland's anti-corruption watchdog backs calls from the state's Integrity Commissioner for increased independence and mechanisms to stop political interference.
Read more »
Ottawa declares state of emergency as Canada trucker protest paralyses cityPolice chief describes situation as a ‘siege’ as thousands of protesters join demonstrations against Covid restrictions
Read more »
Peloton chief executive steps down as company cuts 2,800 jobsPeloton is replacing its chief executive, cutting jobs and reining in ambitious expansion plans after badly misjudging the staying power of the exercise-at-home trend.
Read more »
Unesco warns of crisis in creative sector with 10m jobs lost due to pandemicArtists finding it harder than ever to make a living despite being part of one of the fastest growing industries
Read more »