Taking action to stop foreign interference

DECEMBER 13, 2017: STRONGER protection of our national interests will be provided by a number of measures introduced into the Federal Parliament to restrict foreign interference and ban all foreign political donations.These legislative reforms are the most significant overhaul of foreign interference and foreign donation laws in decades.There is no doubt that foreign powers are making unprecedented and sophisticated attempts to influence the political process, both here and abroad.We’ve seen that play out this week in the series of events which led to the resignation of Labor Senator Sam Dastyari.The foreign interference bills package will completely update our criminal laws in relation to espionage and covert influence by foreign governments and their agencies.This means that if you are covertly acting on behalf of, or cooperating with, a foreign power against our national interest, you could soon be found guilty of a serious offence.And if you’re acting on behalf of a foreign entity to influence our political process, you will have to declare your allegiance or face serious penalties.A comprehensive ban of foreign donations will also be introduced to ensure that only Australians and Australian entities can participate in our elections.Current legislation is too narrow and has not been successfully prosecuted in decades.The passage of this legislation will ensure our Parliament is strong enough to withstand attempts by foreign powers to interfere with or influence decision making which is in Australia’s best interests.