Scott Morrison launches surprising side hustle after leaving top job

Former prime minister Scott Morrison has launched a surprising new side hustle which he has been documenting for his Facebook audience.

Scott Morrison has hit the lucrative international speaking circuit as he prepares for life after politics insisting Australia’s Covid response was world class.

Despite anger over the rollout of the vaccine program and the RAT test mess over Christmas, Mr Morrison will tell his international audience that history would treat his government more kindly than the election suggests.

After having his pay slashed from $550,000 to $211,250 as a backbencher, the former Prime Minister unveiled his first side hustle overnight on Facebook.

In an address to the Asian Leadership Conference in Seoul, he’ll insist Australia can be proud of its virus record.

Scott Morrison shared a selfie of himself with former Malaysian prime minister Mahathir Mohamad. Picture: Facebook/scottmorrisonmp

“The results we were able to achieve were no accident. It was ‘no fluke’ as we like to say,” he will say in his speech.

“Australia’s results do tell a proud story. One of the lowest fatality rates, highest vaccination rates and strongest economic performances of any developed country in the world.

“Australia’s response saved an estimated 40,000 lives.”

Mr Morrison, who provided a copy of his speech to The Australian, is expected to quit politics before the next election and is believed to be chasing board roles.

He recently dismissed “pub talk” revelations he has spruiked his wares as a possible appointment to the Australian Rugby League Commission.

Morrison had a meeting with former US vice president Mike Pence. Picture: Facebook/scottmorrisonmp

In his speech he said he had learned a lot about leadership from his time in the top job.

“As I look back on those times now, there are many take-outs, ­especially from a leadership perspective,” he said. “One of the most important is that in a crisis leaders must be across the detail.

“You quickly become the central point of all information, communication and decision making.

“You set the pace, tone and direction of the national response. Attention to detail matters critically, especially when it comes to process.

“Events move very quickly in a crisis. Sound process provides the guardrails to get things as right as you can, and the mechanisms to fix them quickly when you don’t.”

Scott Morrison was one of several world leaders invited to speak. Picture: Facebook/centerforasialeadership

The former prime minister said sometimes he also just had to “cop it” when things went wrong.

“The flow and source of your information and advice, the ­decision-making process, your accountability and follow-up mechanisms, implementation plans – it all matters,” he said.

“This should not be confused with becoming a control freak, wanting to be hands-on in implementing all aspects of your response. That is a recipe for disaster.

“You must be able to trust and delegate, understanding that you and your team will not get everything right. And you must reconcile yourself to the fact that when it does go wrong (which it certainly will at some point) and events conspire against your best-laid plans and advice, as the leader you will just have to cop it.”

He’ll also tell his international audience that some voters who were angry he didn’t intervene more didn’t understand Australia’s system of government.

“Frustration with the ­national cabinet was actually frustration with the nature of our Constitution and federation,” he will say in the speech.

Morrison appeared in a teaser of the event a few days beforehand. Picture: Facebook/centerforasialeadership

“But in a crisis, this was no time to engage in a political debate about our federation, nor as the national leader to pick fights with provincial leaders.

“Leadership often requires you to take the hit for the mission you are engaged in.

“This was certainly the case when it came to managing our federation during the pandemic.

“A crisis demanded that you curb your natural defensive domestic political instincts to focus on the bigger job and bigger picture. It could not be politics as usual.

“We didn’t always agree, especially when it came to issues where the medical advice was not consistent such as state borders, school closures or vaccine mandates.

He watched the State of Origin from Seoul. Picture: Facebook/scottmorrisonmp

“As the pandemic evolved, it became more difficult to keep uniformity in the various restrictions employed by each state as the experience of the virus was no longer uniform.

“When we disagreed, this caused great frustration among the public. While such dis­agreement was inevitable, many Australians found it difficult to understand why the prime minister could not just make the decisions.

“Some even mistakenly believed that the establishment of the national cabinet had devolved federal powers to the states. This was untrue. The states had always had these powers.”

On Facebook, Mr Morrison also revealed he had held meetings with former US vice president Mike Pence and former Malaysian prime minister Mahathir Mohamad.

The annual dialogue is also hosting former US first lady Michelle Obama.