- by FK
- The Guardian
- Issue #2145
Photo: Highway Patrol Images – flickr.com (CC BY 2.0)
One notable feature of the governments Peter Dutton used to be a member of was the creation of a giant government department for him to run. Home Affairs included a group of previously independent government departments, all bound up under Dutton’s authority, with Border Force officers nicely clad in quasi-military uniforms, just the way Peter Dutton liked it.
In 2022, Labor moved the Australian Federal Police back to the Attorney-General’s Department. It had good reason to – the Home Affairs budget blew out wildly, even under Labor. The Australian National Audit Office found major inefficiencies in Home Affairs’ regulation of migration agents.
Apart from the obvious failure of Home Affairs as a mega-department, there are good reasons for the Australian Federal Police (AFP) to be under the Attorney-General. That provides some sort of check on the AFP’s extensive powers.
Home Affairs received $100 million in the last budget to help it do better. Now that the AFP has been moved back in, Crikey has described the moves as “Incompetence is rewarded.” J
