John Rodsted: [00:00:00]

Content in this episode:

1. Today we speak with Paul Barratt AO, Australians For War Powers Reform [00:00:19]
2. An Insider To Policy and Decision Making [00:03:04]
3. What Role Does Opposition In Parliament Play? [00:04:36]
4. The Australians For War Powers Reform [00:05:38]
5. Is The Response Time An Issue? [00:06:56]
6. Will Politics Get In The Way? [00:08:25]
7. How to Keep Intelligence Secret? [00:09:39]
8. Who Supports War Powers Reforms? [00:11:37]
9. An Artificial Intelligence Arms Race? [00:14:56]
10. Legal Framework In Decision Making [00:17:14]
11. Bias & Lack of Cultural Knowledge and Sensitivity [00:17:55]
12. An Algorithm Mess [00:20:58]
13. Responsibility For Picking Up The Tab? [00:24:03]
14. Will Killer Robots Be Used If We Get Them? [00:24:56]
15. Weapons and Proportionality [00:25:53]
16. Campaign Vigorously to Outlaw Fully Lethal Autnomous Weapons[00:26:55]
17. The Role of Universities [00:29:14]
18. Trusting The Prime Minister? [00:31:07]
19. General info about SafeGround podcasts, Acknowledgement of traditional owners & Stock Credits [00:32:48]

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Welcome to SafeGround, the small organization with big ideas. I'm John Rodsted. Today. We're speaking with Paul Barrett. Paul has had a long career in Australia's public service since 1966, but what distinguishes him from many others within government and the public sector is his strong conscience.

He's held many senior roles within government, notably within the department of trade, primary industries in energy and the business council of Australia and Secretary of the Department of Defence from 1998 to 1999. It was his senior role in the Department of Defence that put him at odds with the government positions and policy.

This led him to leaving the public service. Since then, he's had a very strong voice on how and why Australia goes to war and the powers that a few have to commit us to war. He's also one of the founders and current president of Australians for War Power Reform. Welcome Paul.

Paul Barratt: [00:01:12] Morning John

John Rodsted: [00:01:13] Originally you studied physics and graduated with honours from the

University of New England. How did you go from serious science to Australia's public service and Department of Defence?

Paul Barratt: [00:01:23] Well, John, throughout my, undergraduate career, I was intending to do a PhD in physics and become an academic physicist. And towards the end of my honors year, I read this interesting little advertisement in the Sydney Morning Herald, I had sort of had a rough rush of blood to the head and joined the public service.

And that interesting little advertisement said the department of defence was looking for people to monitor scientific developments of defence interest in the Asia Pacific region. So I thought that sounds interesting. And I applied for it months later and security clearances later, and what have you? I turned up for work and discovered that the scientific developments of defence...