Anthony Albanese’s department refuses to reveal what prime ministers wrote to governors-general

‘Just too busy and too hard’ to reveal what past prime ministers wrote to governors-general, the public service says.

Former governors-general David Hurley (left), Quentin Bryce and Peter Cosgrove.

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Anthony Albanese’s department is determined to ensure Australians can never access hundreds of official letters from recent prime ministers to governors-general because the public interest does not outweigh the effort involved.

The Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet is strongly defending a decision to block all access to letters sent by Tony Abbott, Malcolm Turnbull, Scott Morrison and Mr Albanese to Quentin Bryce, Peter Cosgrove and David Hurley.

After a Freedom of Information request for correspondence formally exchanged between the prime minister and ­governor-general between 2013 and 2023 was refused in April 2023 and affirmed after a review in June 2023, The Australian took the case to the Australian Information Commissioner.

The department has argued to the OAIC that a “practical refusal reason” exists to deny access to all correspondence because the work involved is too onerous for them to undertake and “would substantially and unreasonably divert the resources of the department from its other operations”.

“While the department acknowledges the public interest in the requested documents broadly, it is also obliged to weigh the competing public interest in the ­department performing its ordinary functions without substantial interference,” Mr Albanese’s department submitted to the OAIC.

The Australian argued that a practical refusal reason to deny access did not outweigh the strong public interest in the relationship between the head of government and vice-regal occupant, especially during an eventful time in Australian politics where there was intense engagement between both offices.

It was noted that this was a ­period of significant public interest, given it included four changes of prime minister, two changes of government from Labor to ­Coalition to Labor, and navigation of a minority parliament.

Further, Mr Turnbull arguing to Sir Peter that he should not swear in Peter Dutton as prime minister on the grounds he may not be constitutionally eligible if he became Liberal leader and Mr Morrison’s multiple secret min­istries that were not disclosed by him were also matters of strong interest.

Moreover, The Australian has argued that Mr Albanese promised to lead a transparent and accountable government prior to the last election.

This decision, like many others, runs counter to that and against the principle that Australians have a right to know their history and have access to government information.

At least 240 items of “official correspondence” were located by the department in one database that covered a shorter period of between 2016 and 2023 that related to the FOI request. However, these were not made available as it would be a “complex and voluminous” task.

The department also argued that several documents had “sensitivities” and raised “personal privacy” concerns.

This decision to deny access to vice-regal correspondence follows that of Mr Albanese’s department to also deny access to letters between former prime ministers and Queen Elizabeth II, ­another case that has been taken to the Australian Information Commissioner.

Yet Mr Albanese released his correspondence with King Charles III following an FOI request by The Australian in March this year.