Commonwealth Consolidated Acts

AUSTRALIAN SECURITY INTELLIGENCE ORGANISATION ACT 1979 - SECT 34F

Seeking of Minister's consent to request for warrant

             (1)  The Director‑General may seek the Minister's consent to request the issue of a warrant under section 34G in relation to a person.

             (2)  To avoid doubt, this section operates in relation to a request for the issue of a warrant under section 34G in relation to a person, even if a request for the issue of a warrant under this Division has previously been made in relation to the person.

             (3)  In seeking the Minister's consent, the Director‑General must give the Minister a draft request that includes:

                     (a)  a draft of the warrant to be requested; and

                     (b)  a statement of the facts and other grounds on which the Director‑General considers it necessary that the warrant should be issued; and

                     (c)  a statement of the particulars and outcomes of all previous requests for the issue of a warrant under this Division relating to the person; and

                     (d)  if one or more warrants were issued under this Division as a result of the previous requests--a statement of:

                              (i)  the period for which the person has been questioned under each of those warrants before the draft request is given to the Minister; and

                             (ii)  if any of those warrants authorised the detention of the person--the period for which the person has been detained in connection with each such warrant before the draft request is given to the Minister.

Minister's consent to making of request

             (4)  The Minister may, by writing, consent to the making of the request, but only if the Minister is satisfied:

                     (a)  that there are reasonable grounds for believing that issuing the warrant to be requested will substantially assist the collection of intelligence that is important in relation to a terrorism offence; and

                     (b)  that relying on other methods of collecting that intelligence would be ineffective; and

                     (c)  that there is in force under section 34C a written statement of procedures to be followed in the exercise of authority under warrants issued under this Division; and

                     (d)  that there are reasonable grounds for believing that, if the person is not immediately taken into custody and detained, the person:

                              (i)  may alert a person involved in a terrorism offence that the offence is being investigated; or

                             (ii)  may not appear before the prescribed authority; or

                            (iii)  may destroy, damage or alter a record or thing the person may be requested in accordance with the warrant to produce.

The Minister may make his or her consent subject to changes being made to the draft request.

             (5)  In consenting to the making of a request, the Minister must ensure that the warrant to be requested is to permit the person to contact a single lawyer of the person's choice (subject to section 34ZO) at any time that:

                     (a)  is a time while the person is in detention in connection with the warrant; and

                     (b)  is after:

                              (i)  the person has been brought before a prescribed authority for questioning; and

                             (ii)  the person has informed the prescribed authority, in the presence of a person exercising authority under the warrant, of the identity of the lawyer whom the person proposes to contact; and

                            (iii)  a person exercising authority under the warrant has had an opportunity to request the prescribed authority to direct under section 34ZO that the person be prevented from contacting the lawyer.

             (6)  If, before the Director‑General seeks the Minister's consent to the request (the proposed request ), the person has been detained under this Division in connection with one or more warrants (the earlier warrants ) issued under this Division:

                     (a)  the Minister must take account of those facts in deciding whether to consent; and

                     (b)  the Minister may consent only if the Minister is satisfied that the issue of the warrant to be requested is justified by information that is additional to or materially different from that known to the Director‑General at the time the Director‑General sought the Minister's consent to request the issue of the last of the earlier warrants issued before the seeking of the Minister's consent to the proposed request.

This subsection has effect in addition to subsection (4).

Form of request

             (7)  If the Minister has consented under subsection (4), the Director‑General may request the warrant by giving an issuing authority :

                     (a)  a request that is the same as the draft request except for the changes (if any) required by the Minister; and

                     (b)  a copy of the Minister's consent.