Crackdown on Australian port and maritime security

The Office of Transport Security (OTS) has issued a report which revealed that convicted criminals are free to work at Australian ports due to gaps in national maritime security.

According to The Age, the 75-page report centred on the Maritime Security Identity Card (the MSIC scheme) which was introduced six years ago. It requires maritime industry workers to undergo criminal background screening and assessment before being allowed to access wharves or offshore facilities.

However, it seems that the MSIC scheme has not successfully detected a range of offences, meaning that convicted criminals who have backgrounds in terrorist activities or organised crime are allowed to work at Australian ports.

According to the Department of Transport, since October 2008, 20 percent of Australia’s 12,500 maritime workers who have applied for a security card had a criminal record. Only 41 percent of them were denied a card.

A departmental source said the government had been aware of the problem for over a year but did not act due to union opposition to increased screening processes, The Age reported.

A further revelation was that the existing security system did not take into account criminal intelligence data held by the Australian Crime Commission (ACC).

The report called for an overhaul of the current system and recommended broadening the number and types of offences for which a maritime worker could be denied a pass.
 

Source: Baird Maritime