Thread by @MrKRudd

The Morrison Government pretends that it cares about the mismanagement of public money, but everywhere you turn you see them splurging on waste and pet projects while cutting services for those in need. Let me share one recent personal experience.

15 months ago, in Sept 2019, I wrote to the Morrison Govt to ask about the new Foreign Influence Transparency Register, which is designed to catch foreign agents trying to influence our politics. It affects everyone, but the rules are tighter for former ministers, as they should.

I have been a supporter of this Foreign Influence Transparency Scheme (FITS) legislation from the beginning, because it's important to keep tabs on actual agents of foreign government influence who are trying to affect Australian politics. It's a good and worthy objective.

I had already checked with my lawyer, who said I didn't have to register because I don't do anything "on behalf of" a foreign power. Pretty straightforward. But, not wanting to go to prison by accident, I thought why not double-check with the government?

My day job is at an American think tank, @AsiaPolicy, and I have roles with universities and other non-government organisations in the US, Canada, the UK & elsewhere. But I do not receive any payments coming from foreign governments & I am in no way an agent of foreign influence.

We wrote to them in Sept 2019. After many follow-up letters, the Govt finally got back to me a few weeks ago and basically said: "You need to register some of your activities, but we don't want to tell you which ones; and if you register the wrong ones, you might be prosecuted."

Since then, I've been trying to work out which of my interactions with foreigners need to be registered with the Morrison Govt, and which don't — and it's clear as mud. In my various roles, I've probably been in meetings with people from 30+ different countries in the last month.

The Morrison Government's definition of a foreign "arrangement" is so broad, they reckon I may be at risk of becoming a secret agent of British influence in Australia just by appearing live on @BBC. Even if Australia doesn't come up. Or even if I criticise the UK Govt on-air.

By the way, this Government said the law would be applied with "common sense" after @HonTonyAbbott kicked up a stink & refused to register his speech to an international conservative political conference last year. The reality is that little common sense is being applied at all.

I've therefore decided that, instead of doing an Abbott by ignoring the government, I am just going to register every contact with foreign countries on a rolling basis, at least until this Government stops wasting its time and your money. theguardian.com/australia-news…

I informed the Attorney-General's Department of this decision yesterday, and you'll eventually be able to see my registration here: ag.gov.au/integrity/fore… I'll keep updating it as needed.

Wait till the Murdoch mafia find out I'm a Snr Fellow at University of Toronto, Canada, and Chatham House, London; or that I haven't finished my PhD in the UK; or that I interviewed the Chinese Foreign Minister at an @AsiaSociety event. Hold the front page for that one, Rupert.

Quite apart from the lack of clarity around what the obligations are for all former Cabinet ministers, my experience of the way this legislation is being interpreted has raised a real problem for media freedom.

I've spoken with Bret Walker SC, one of the country's top legal minds, and he advises me that media organisations aren't exempt from the new law. So they too, it seems, need to register their arrangements with foreign governments.

Bret Walker SC highlighted to me the example of Murdoch's @SharriMarkson being leaked an "explosive dossier" (probably by the Trump Administration) to influence the Australian public. Similar tactics were used to soften Australians up to invade Iraq.

https://twitter.com/ABCmediawatch/status/1260328900095172608?s=20

I'm not saying @SharriMarkson should have to register as a potential agent of foreign influence, but that seems to be what the Gov's broad interpretation means. I've written to the AG's Dept urging them to work through this perhaps unintended consequence w/ @withmeaa & publishers

I'd personally argue that billionaire Rupert Murdoch, as a US citizen, is Australia's most powerful foreign influencer. Politicians all over the world, including Morrison, know Murdoch offers them a protection racket if they do his company favours. Is that "foreign influence"?

There are fmr ministers who should rightly register their foreign influence. Robb worked for the Chinese company that leased Port of Darwin. Abbott is now a UK trade negotiator. Hockey keeps contact with the Trump Admin and reflects these views in our media. All important to know

But the wide interpretation by the AG's Department implies that any arrangement by a former cabinet minister must be registered or face possibility of prosecution. So we'll keep burning taxpayer dollars to find out who's having tea with Howard, and when Turnbull goes on the BBC.