Subscriber • Opinion

Public Sector Informant: No easy ways to clear APS security hurdles

By John Wilson and Kieran Pender
Updated August 3 2021 - 3:20pm, first published 12:00am
Long waits for security clearances are a common gripe among candidates for public service jobs. Picture: Shutterstock
Long waits for security clearances are a common gripe among candidates for public service jobs. Picture: Shutterstock

Deciding whether or not to grant a security clearance to a particular employee has been described, by no lesser authority than the United States Supreme Court, as "a sensitive and inherently discretionary judgment call". This truism presents a significant obstacle to any Australian public servant who finds themselves in the position of being denied a security clearance, or having an existing clearance varied or revoked. But while such decisions may be inherently discretionary, that does not make them entirely unreviewable. Reviewing an adverse security clearance assessment is the focus of this article.

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