Australian Law Council president Arthur Moses says giving a politician the power to authorise the prosecution of journalists for reporting on top secret documents could actually deter the press from breaking stories critical of the government.
Mr Moses told a parliamentary inquiry into press freedom on Friday the law council did not support Attorney-General Christian Porter's new power to approve the prosecution of journalist for offences related to national security.
The power was intended as a safeguard to ensure journalists were not being pursued by law enforcement for breaking stories that were in the national interest.
But Mr Moses said it was a problem that a politician would be placed in a position of authorising prosecutions of journalists who may have written stories critical of his or her government.
"This will not improve press freedom, it will serve as another potential deterrent to the public interest," Mr Moses said.
Mr Moses said there was no evidence this was the intent of the new power, but likely an unintended consequences.
"The effect is that we create a culture of apprehension, where journalists may be reluctant to report on particular matters less they get off-side with the Attorney-General, for the government."
Mr Moses also rejected claims that creating an exemption for journalists under national security laws would be placing them above the law.
"That is not true. A free media exists the benefit of Australians. It serves the critical function of scrutinising misconduct, misinformation, and misuse of power," Mr Moses said.
More to come
