Mr McCORMACK (Riverina—Deputy Prime Minister, Minister for Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Development and Leader of The Nationals) (14:43): As a former journalist of 21 years standing—11 as a daily newspaper editor—I of course believe in the freedom of the press. The government is committed to the freedom of the press. Freedom of the press is central to our democracy—always has been, is now, always will be. It's also the government's first duty to keep Australians safe. That's the first priority. These considerations have to be carefully balanced. The government has asked the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security to inquire into the impact— Mr Porter: I thought that was bipartisan. Mr McCORMACK: of the exercise of law enforcement and intelligence powers on the freedom of the press. And, as the Attorney-General has just said, we thought that that was bipartisan. At the committee's request, and as agreed by the Attorney-General, the reporting date for this inquiry has been extended to 28 November. The search warrants executed by the Australian Federal Police go to investigations under old laws that the Liberal-Nationals government repealed and replaced with provisions that have strong protections for journalists. As this matter is now before the courts, it would not be appropriate to comment further. But operational decisions are a matter, as they have to be, for the AFP and are made independent of executive government. That's the way it should be. The warrants were executed without the knowledge or the instigation of any government minister.