Labor has balance right on terror: Shorten

Bill Shorten believes Labor has got the balance right in its support for tough national security laws, despite a senior colleague saying they may have overstepped the mark.

Anthony Albanese has hit out at the lack of scrutiny over the anti-terror measures that allow journalists to be jailed for reporting on intelligence operations.

Labor backed the beefed-up powers for domestic spy agency ASIO in parliament this month.

But Mr Albanese has now expressed concerns about press freedom and the rights of journalists.

Mr Shorten said he understood those concerns but was confident about the party's stance.

"What Labor will do on every occasion is get the balance right between the liberties of individuals, the important principle of press freedom, but also national security," the opposition leader told reporters in Melbourne.