Defence Officials Fail to Block Social Media Hearing Clips
Celia Perkins and Meghan Quinn of the Department of Defence attempted to restrict the social media sharing of public parliamentary testimony, but Senate officials rejected the request.
Deputy Secretary Celia Perkins attempted to block the publication of edited social media clips from her parliamentary hearing evidence during a September 4 committee session. Perkins stated that defence witnesses did not consent to the reposting of their evidence to social media, citing risks of foreign espionage, national security threats, and the potential for online bullying and harassment.
Internal emails obtained via Freedom of Information reveal that Department of Defence Secretary Meghan Quinn approved the proposal. The plan was also discussed with the offices of Assistant Defence Minister Peter Khalil and Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles. However, Committee Chair Senator Jess Collins immediately rejected the request, asserting the right of senators and the public to disseminate evidence provided in hearings.
Senate Clerk Richard Pye described the request as profoundly unhelpful and legally impermissible, stating that witnesses cannot censor public evidence. Senator David Shoebridge of the Greens further opposed the move, arguing that witnesses in open public hearings do not have the authority to censor what the public sees. While Steven Kennedy of the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet acknowledged concerns regarding the intimidation of witnesses, he stated he does not support censoring the footage.
