Whither the NSS?
by Sam Roggeveen
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4 January 2010 2:21PM
Today's blogging is partly devoted to raking over the ideas and events of 2009, but here's one thing that didn't happen last year: the Prime Minister did not deliver a National Security Statement.
In his first NSS to parliament in December 2008, Mr Rudd said:
This inaugural national security statement outlines the new approach the Government is taking to address current and future national security challenges.
It is intended that this become a regular statement to the parliament of the state of Australia’s national security and the new and emerging challenges that we face.
Just as the annual Budget Statement provides an annual review of the state of the economy.
The wording here is loose enough to allow the PM to say he didn't break a promise by failing to offer a follow-up speech in 2009. Still, it would be interesting to know why there has been no new speech and when the PM plans to deliver one.
