Media Release 180/2004
5 November 2004
ASIO Report to Parliament 2003-04
The continued threat from terrorist groups such as al-Qa’ida and Jemaah Islamiyah
referred to in ASIO’s annual Report to Parliament, demonstrates the importance
of maintaining the Organisation’s ability to respond, the Attorney-General Philip
Ruddock said today.
“ASIO has used its new powers to question people suspected of terrorism offences
three times since the ASIO Act amendments were passed by Parliament in July
2003,” Mr Ruddock said.
The Report to Parliament 2003-04, tabled today, states that questioning warrants
have provided valuable information for ASIO investigations. No detention warrants
were sought over the period.
Since 11 September 2001, 10 people (including 2 in 2003-04) have been refused
entry into Australia because of their assessed involvement in terrorist activities
and 20 Australian passports (including 6 in 2003-04) have been cancelled or
denied by the Minister for Foreign Affairs following an adverse security assessment.
“The Government’s decision to establish the National Threat Assessment Centre
has significantly boosted ASIO’s capability to respond to threat intelligence
and information relating to terrorism,” Mr Ruddock said.
Over 2000 threat assessments were issued in 2003-04, with a significant increase
in assessments of threats to Australian interests overseas.
The overall terrorist threat level in Australia remained at Medium throughout
the year, and at High for Australian interests in much of South-East Asia, South
Asia, the Middle East and parts of East Africa. The picture is unlikely to alter
significantly any time soon.
The flow of information into the Organisation has increased fivefold since
11 September 2001. The National Security Hotline, for example, referred 13 38
1 calls to ASIO in the year ending 30 June 2004. Of these, 2602 required the
initiation of some investigation.
To help ASIO meet its growing workload, the Government has increased the Organisation’s
budget from $62.9m in 2000-01 to $152.7m in 2004-05. ASIO enhanced its collection,
technical and analytical capabilities and stepped up its recruitment.
By mid-2006 ASIO’s staff will total around 1000.
Media Contact: Steve Ingram Parliament House Phone: 02 6277 7300 Fax:
02 6273 4102
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