View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by RMIT Research Repository Spinning the secrets of state: The history and politics of intelligence politicisation in Australia A thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Justin T. McPhee B Soc. Sci. B Soc. Sci. (Honours) RMIT University School of Global, Urban and Social Studies College of Design and Social Context RMIT University June 2015 Declaration I certify that except where due acknowledgement has been made, the work is that of the author alone; the work has not been submitted previously, in whole or in part, to qualify for any other academic award; the content of the thesis is the result of work which has been carried out since the official commencement date of the approved research program; any editorial work, paid or unpaid, carried out by a third party is acknowledged; and, ethics procedures and guidelines have been followed. Justin T. McPhee 12 June 2015 Contents Acknowledgements i. Abbreviations ii. Research summary 1 Part I Introduction Chapter One: Context, history, and theory 6 Part II A history of intelligence politicisation in Australia Introduction: 56 Chapter Two: Agent of empire or servant of the nation: Australian Intelligence (1901–1910) 57 Chapter Three: Loyalty and allegiance: Australian intelligence, political surveillance, and radical politics (1914–1918) 110 Chapter Four: Systems error: Intelligence inquiries, politicisation, and administrative ruination (1940–1948) 169 Chapter Five: Red revelations: ASIO and the Australian Parliament (1949–1972) 217 Chapter Six: From the shadows to the spotlight: Intelligence leaks, subversion, and media intercession (1972–1975) 273 Part III Discussion and conclusion Introduction: 322 Chapter Seven: The means, forms, and conditions of intelligence politicisation: An assessment 323 References: 360 Acknowledgements For their role in providing supervision, support and encouragement during my candidature I am grateful to many people who have contributed toward the completion of this thesis. I owe a particular debt of gratitude to Doctor Binoy Kampmark, my senior supervisor, for his consistent guidance, erudite counsel and genuine encouragement throughout the project. Binoy critiqued and commented on the draft chapters and was always generous with his time and knowledge to which I benefited tremendously. I am indebted to you for your assistance and engagement with my research. A special thank you to my secondary supervisor, Professor Joseph Siracusa, for his advice and support during my candidacy. I am especially grateful to Richard Trahair for reading various chapters and offering constructive criticism, but also for the positive impact his support and encouragement had on my candidacy. I would like to acknowledge the Australian Research Council and RMIT University for generously funding the research through the Australian Postgraduate Award program. Thank you to the staff of the Australian National Archives in Canberra and Melbourne for their assistance, and the staff of the Australian National Library; the Victorian State Library; RMIT University Library; The British Library and the British National Archives. A special thank you to those who assisted with finding specific documents that were particularly difficult to locate, especially: Christine Bryan at ANU Archives; Katie Wood at Melbourne University Archives and Randy Sowell at the Truman Library. Many other academics provided invaluable advice and guidance that helped clarify and inform aspects of the research to which I am very grateful. Thank you: Paul Battersby, Kim Humphery, Julian Lee, Pavla Miller, and Aiden Warren. I would also like to thank Professor Mark Finnane and Doctor Robert Imre. Lastly to my family, especially my wife Sarah, you have been a constant source of support, encouragement and patience from the beginning to the end of this project, thank you. i. Abbreviations ABC Australian Broadcasting Corporation AICD Association for International Cooperation and Disarmament ALP Australian Labor Party APL Australian Protective League ASIO Australian Security Intelligence Organisation ASIS Australian Secret Intelligence Service CEB Counter Espionage Bureau CIB Commonwealth Investigations Branch (Attorney General’s Office) CPA Communist Party of Australia CSS Commonwealth Security Service DSD Defence Signals Directorate IWW Industrial Workers of the World NA National Archives (UK) NAA National Archives of Australia ONA Office of National Assessments PJCAAD Parliamentary Joint Committee on ASIO, ASIS and DSD SIB Special Intelligence Bureau WFTU World Federation of Trade Unions ii Research Summary Australian security intelligence organisations collect, analyse and disseminate information relevant to the security of the nation and the protection of its citizens. Ideally, the intelligence function should be politically neutral, and detached from the policy objectives of the government it serves. Its purpose is to supply impartial advice to political leaders to assist with the development of national security policy. But what happens when intelligence ceases to be impartial and is used as a political means to support a policy preference? More significantly, what happens when intelligence is manipulated to achieve this aim? The short answer is that intelligence becomes politicised. But findings in this study show that the term ‘politicised intelligence’ is perhaps a simple way of describing a complex process. Questions remain about what this process involves, how it occurs, and what function it serves that require a more detailed explanation. For example, how does intelligence become politicised? What constitutes politicisation, and in what forms can it appear? And, what are the general preconditions that are likely to invoke such actions? Spinning the secrets of state answers these questions by providing a history of intelligence politicisation in Australia from 1901 to 1975. While a growing body of research explores the history and functions of the Australian intelligence community, little is known about the problem of intelligence politicisation in Australia. Remarkably, the variety of forms that constitute politicisation, and the conditions under which it can occur are even less clear. 1 This study identifies the forms and clarifies its emergence. Drawing on archival documents, political manuscripts, Hansard publications and historical newspaper accounts the study presents several case histories of politicised intelligence in Australia. The study develops an empirical framework in which to theorise about how politicisation occurs, and pays close attention to identifying and explaining the conditions enabling this behaviour to arise. To develop this framework, the thesis is divided into three core sections. Section one begins by establishing the context of the study, outlining the research questions, and introducing the central argument. It then reviews some of the major studies and theoretical perspectives in the academic literature that guide the subsequent analysis. Section two provides several historical case studies. Each case study presents evidence of politicisation in Australia identifying and explaining the means, forms, and conditions under which politicisation occurred. The final section presents the answers to the principal research questions and offers an assessment of the overall findings. In this thesis, findings indicate that when political leaders face strong opposition to a policy choice they are sometimes tempted to politicise intelligence to overcome that resistance. In doing so, the politicisation of intelligence is often used as a means of promoting a policy goal by selectively disclosing secret information to support that goal. In this way, intelligence is used to persuade a sceptical audience toward the wisdom of a policy decision either through targeted leaks, public disclosure and the publicisation of secret information. 2 Additional findings indicate that secret intelligence can be an effective means of discrediting political opposition and the intentions and authenticity of activist political groups. In short, this study argues that politicising intelligence offers a means of advancing preferred policy interests through promotion and persuasion while also offering a means of undermining the authority and legitimacy of opposition groups. The findings of the study suggest that intelligence organisations might also engage in acts of politicisation, but for different reasons. For instance, intelligence organisations may use their own resources to undermine the political leadership, or subvert a desired policy goal of a government, if they believe that policy or administration is a threat to their organisational interests. In this context, politicisation is a means of political subversion. The study shows that politicisation can take on several different forms ranging from direct political intervention, where intelligence is forced to conform to policy preferences, through to more subtle variations occurring through unintended analytical biases. Explanations as to what conditions cause intelligence to be used for political purposes can be grouped around three variables: turbulent political and social circumstances, and conditions relating to the amount of ministerial oversight and control exercised over the intelligence service. 3 In the following chapters, this study describes in greater detail the way in which these means and forms can facilitate