Many of the chronic delays these days are caused by checks to see if applicants have any associations with ‘outlaw bikie gangs’ – i.e. illicit drug importers. ASICs were handed out like confetti by some issuing bodies when there was a huge increase in the number of newbie baggage handlers (I wonder why there were so many newbie baggage handlers…) and some of the recipients had ‘clean’ criminal records but ‘unsavoury’ friends. The potential security gaps (and the obvious conflict of interest of some issuing bodies) is what precipitated the push for all ASIC issuing to be done ‘in house’.
Now that Admiral General Comptroller Supremo Pezzulo has been punted as head of Home Affairs, and therefore the ongoing building of his own defence force and broader empire has been curtailed, it may be that the plan for all issuing to be done ‘in house’ will be abandoned. Let’s hope so, especially given that the ASIC system is an expensive façade that won’t stop any terrorist with half a brain or stop the tsunami of illegal drugs that continues to swamp Australia (due to a thing called ‘demand’).