Don Harwin’s speedy return to Cabinet set to stoke Lib tensions
Don Harwin’s speedy return to Cabinet after his lockdown fine was dropped on Friday has raised eyebrows among backbench MPs, who are stunned by the special treatment he appears to have been given in his bid to clear his name.
Opinion
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Premier Gladys Berejiklian might have rescued her friend Don Harwin, but she’s made other enemies in the process.
Backbench MPs — even those factionally aligned to the moderate powerbroker — are stunned by the special treatment the minister appears to have been given in his bid to clear his name.
Firstly, there is disbelief that Mr Harwin’s matter managed to defy court backlogs by its expedition from its set date in October.
His colleague John Sidoti, who was stood aside from Cabinet and has lived life in limbo for 10 months awaiting an ICAC investigation, would appreciate the same treatment — as would many Australians caught up in the regular justice system.
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Secondly, there is surprise Ms Berejiklian has implicitly backed the Director of Public Prosecutions, who elected to drop the fine, against her own Police Commissioner, who personally reviewed and signed off on it.
Mick Fuller — who has been Ms Berejiklian’s right-hand man through the COVID crisis and managed some of the state’s most difficult tasks, including cleaning up the cruise ship fiasco — yesterday stood by his decision to fine the roving minister.
Putting the fine to one side, there is a perception that Mr Harwin brought the government into disrepute with his travel in April and got away with it.
Even before the fine, Ms Berejiklian declared she was “deeply disappointed” and conceded his actions would not meet public expectation.
Despite this, she made the decision to bring her friend back to Cabinet within hours of the DPP dropping the fine.
One MP remarked yesterday: “For someone who is so cautious and slow to act, she moved at lightning pace to reinstate her mate.”