SYDNEY, Feb 12: The Australian government was accused on Tuesday of spying on its citizens by intercepting private phone calls to a ship involved in last year’s refugee crisis.

The Daily Telegraph said transcripts of private conversations had been used to form a political response to the controversy over Prime Minister John Howard’s refusal to allow the Norwegian freighter Tampa to land a cargo of asylum-seekers.

The Tampa again made headlines as the opposition accused the government of “outrageous and unAustralian” behaviour and minor parties demanded a judicial inquiry.—AFP