Exclusive: AFP losing independence and ability to investigate freely as part of home affairs super-department, association says
The Australian federal police is losing its independence and integrity and must be separated from Peter Dutton’s home affairs portfolio, police union leaders have warned.The AFP was subsumed into the behemoth home affairs portfolio in late 2017, placing it under Dutton’s direct responsibility.But the Australian Federal Police Association, which represents 6,500 AFP members, now wants the change reversed, saying it has compromised the AFP’s organisational integrity and its ability to carry out investigations without government influence.
The association president, Angela Smith, said the AFP has lost autonomy and is now the “poor cousin” in the home affairs portfolio. Smith said it was a feeling shared widely across the AFP, including in the agency’s senior ranks.“It’s an embarrassing situation,” Smith told Guardian Australia. “We look the least independent police force in Australia, surely the other police forces are laughing at us.”The AFPA pointed to the compromised situation the agency was placed in during the Australian Workers’ Union raid and au pair scandals. The latter involved federal police searching the offices of fellow portfolio agency, the home affairs department.Federal police are also frustrated at criticism in politically charged controversies outside of their control, including the detention of Hakeem al-Araibi, which the agency says was caused by a decision made in home affairs department.The AFPA wants the AFP to return to either the attorney general’s remit or that of a separate cabinet minister. It wants investigators to be able to determine what is investigated and how, with no outside influence from politicians.
