Rex Patrick sprays Labor over AAT attack

Senator Rex Patrick accuses Labor of letting ‘perfect be the enemy of good’ by blocking his proposed Administrative Appeals Tribunal reform.

Independent Senator Rex Patrick.

Independent senator Rex Patrick has accused Labor of “arrogantly assuming” it will be in government after the next federal election as the Opposition attacks the Coalition for appointing Liberal-linked members to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal.

On Tuesday, Labor’s legal affairs spokesman Mark Dreyfus blasted the Coalition for appointing almost 70 former Liberal MPs, staffers and donors to lucrative taxpayer-funded jobs in the tribunal – responsible for reviewing government decisions – since it was elected in 2013.

Prior to the 2019 election, Labor vowed to reinstate an independent advisory panel to the AAT if it won, amid concerns the tribunal had become politicised by the Coalition.

But senator Patrick underscored what he saw as a major issue with Mr Dreyfus’s attack, saying Labor had blocked his attempts to reform the AAT after he introduced amendments that would prohibit non-lawyers being appointed as tribunal members.

“The Labor Party needs to stop arrogantly assuming they will be in government after the next election,” senator Patrick told The Australian.

“If presented with an opportunity to make a situation better right now, they shouldn’t reject it because they think they have a better solution for implementing if they win government. A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush”.

Acknowledging his amendments were not a “perfect solution”, senator Patrick said Labor was letting the “perfect be the enemy of good” on the assumption it would take office after the next election and implement a wider overhaul of the AAT.

But Mr Dreyfus said senator Patrick’s proposed reform would not solve the problem of any government stacking the tribunal with political appointments.

“His amendment would ensure that the only mates the Liberals would be able to appoint are lawyers or certified accountants,” he said.

Mr Dreyfus said senator Patrick’s proposal would prevent eminently qualified professionals such as social workers and disability support workers reviewing government decisions as tribunal members.

“The Administrative Appeals Tribunal is not a court – it is a merits review tribunal. The role of a tribunal member is to “stand in the shoes” of the original decision-maker, such as a Minister or a senior public servant,” he said.

“Ministers and senior public servants are not required to be lawyers or certified accountants. So it is far from obvious that all tribunal members – people who are required to stand in the shoes of ministers and public servants – should have to be lawyers or certified accountants either.”

Appointments to the AAT are made by the Attorney-General and do not involve a formal advisory process.

Mr Dreyfus said when Labor was last in government it used a “merit-based appointment process” for tribunal appointments, including advertisements and a selection panel.

“The Liberals abolished that process in 2015 and have since appointed almost 80 Liberal mates to the Tribunal, including lobbyists and former media advisers. It stinks,” he said.