I’m not anti-conservative, says sweary ART judge who has backed teal MP

The Administrative Review Tribunal deputy president reveals she has campaigned for a teal MP many times, and concedes she sent a slew of tweets ­attacking conservatives, including one labelling a former PM a ‘f..kwit’.

Administrative Review Tribunal deputy president Clare Thompson.

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The deputy head of the tribunal judging the legality of federal government decisions has revealed she has campaigned and volunteered for teal MP Kate Chaney multiple times, as she concedes she sent out a slew of tweets ­attacking conservatives such as Scott Morrison.

Administrative Review Tribunal deputy president Clare Thompson has previously called Mr Morrison a “f..kwit” and the Liberal Party a “bunch of misogynistic toe rags”.

But she has said she is not “anti-conservative” and it would not impinge on her ability to be impartial in her role.

The Albanese government replaced the Administrative Appeals Tribunal with the ART in its first term, claiming the erstwhile AAT had been “irreversibly damaged” by the former Coalition government, calling it the “Liberal Party employment agency”, and pledged that appointments to the ART would be “transparent and merit-based”.

Ms Thompson said she had been a member of the Liberal Party until 2005 but then volunteered for teal independent Ms Chaney in her 2022 election campaign and donated to her in March 2024. Ms Chaney’s website says Ms Thompson donated $1041.59.

Ms Thompson was appointed to the ART in October that year.

She told ART president Emil­ios Kyrou that she was “in no way anti-conservative”.

“I do not believe I have any difficulties with being non-partisan in my role,” she wrote. “I cannot see that there would be any occasion for me to have a partisan view on any question that came before me, but I am conscious of the need to not only be impartial, but appear to be so as well.

“I will continue to be extremely careful about what I say and how I use social media, and I am committed to the values of the ART.

“ I can assure you I will not use the sort of language I used in those tweets, tabled in parliament, in any public or work setting.”

Opposition legal affairs spokesman Julian Leeser told The Australian that the new revelations about “Ms Thompson’s active political and financial support for Liberal Party opponents just raises further questions about the appointment processes for the ­tribunal”.

“It beggars belief that Labor wasn’t aware of her vulgar and highly partisan public comments prior to her appointment to the tribunal, given the change in her political views and her vocal support for Anthony Albanese ahead of the 2022 election,” he said.

“But it is surprising to learn she also committed personal financial resources and time campaigning against the Liberal Party in the 2022 election. This cannot help the reputation of a Tribunal that has already delivered one of the worst blowouts in performance in years.”

During a Senate hearing last year, then opposition legal affairs spokeswoman Michaelia Cash ­tabled messages posted to Twitter by the recently appointed Ms Thompson, a high-profile silk, in which she had been disparaging towards conservatives.

As well attacking Mr Morrison and the Liberal Party, Ms Thompson also disparaged leading Republicans in the US. “You’re a complete c..t,” she told GOP senator Lindsey Graham in 2021.

In email communications produced by the ART in response to questions on notice to Senate estimates, Ms Thompson told Justice Kyrou that the tweets she had seen were “very likely” hers.

“Anyone who knows me would be generally unsurprised at the language I have used in the two tweets I have seen,” she wrote.

“My personal Twitter account was deleted some time ago, I cannot recall exactly when, but my best recollection is between 18 months and two years ago, although it is possible it was as recent as 12 to 15 months ago. I used it a lot to follow commentary on the Robodebt royal commission.”

Justice Kyrou suggested to Ms Thompson that “as one of the most senior members of the ART, you should consider not having any publicly accessible social media presence”.

Senator Cash during Senate hearings last year said Ms Thompson had used “one of the most repulsive words in the English language”.