Solicitor-General’s legal advice on Scott Morrison jobs scandal released

Anthony Albanese has released legal advice on Scott Morrison’s secret ministerial seizing of five cabinet portfolios.

Scott Morrison didn’t break the law with his ministerial power grab but his secrecy “fundamentally undermined” the principles of a responsible government, the solicitor-general has found.

The legal advice prepared by Australia’s solicitor-general Dr Stephen Donaghue QC into the former prime minister’s jobs scandal was publicly released on Tuesday morning.

Mr Morrison secretly appointed himself as the joint minister in the health, finance, treasury, home affairs, and industry, science, energy and resources portfolios over a period of two years during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Anthony Albanese last week asked Dr Donaghue to prepare the advice after the bombshell revelations were reported in the media.

Mobile users: read the full advice here

Dr Donaghue specifically examined Mr Morrison’s appointment to the industry, science, energy and resources portfolio. He said he considered that his appointment was valid.

But Mr Morrison’s failure to alert the relevant ministers, the parliament or the public was inconsistent “with the principle of responsible government that is inherent in Ch II of the Constitution”.

Mr Donahue said there was no “constitutional or legislative requirement” for notification of Mr Morrison’s appointment to be made in order for it to become valid.

He argued there were a number of possible solutions to this. Mr Dongahue said the government could “alter the form of the ministry lists to ensure that they include details of all appointments under s 64 of the Constitution (as was done in 1987 and 1990).”

“In addition, the government could require, as an administrative practice, the website of each department to list all of the ministers who have been appointed to administer that department.”

He also said that a “practice could be adopted of publishing in the Gazette all appointments made under s 64 of the Constitution, in much the same way as currently occurs for appointments made under s 65 of the Constitution.”

Mr Donahue said that another alternative would be for the Governor-General, “acting with the advice of the Federal Executive Council, to alter the form of the AAO (Administrative Arrangements Order) to include, in the part of the Schedule relating to each department of state, a new section listing every minister who has been appointed to administer that department.

“That would have the considerable practical benefit of including in one place all of the information necessary to identify the minister or ministers who can exercise power under any act.”

The advice from the Solicitor-General clears Governor-General David Hurley.

“In circumstances where Mr Morrison clearly advised the Governor-General to appoint him to administer DISER, and given that the appointment of a minister to administer multiple departments is not unlawful … it would have been a clear breach of the applicable conventions for the Governor-General to decline to accept and act upon the Prime Minister’s advice,” the advice said.

“That is so whether or not the Governor-General was aware that the appointment would not be published.”

He said the undermining of responsible government didn’t depend on the extent to which Mr Morrison exercised his powers in the portfolio.

This is because Mr Morrison was both legally and politically responsible for the department’s administration and yet couldn’t be held accountable for the way he fulfilled that role.

Federal cabinet has agreed to hold a further inquiry into Mr Morrison’s actions after meeting on Tuesday morning to review the solicitor-general’s report.

The Prime Minister said he wanted it to be a “quite expeditious inquiry” conducted independently by an “eminent person with a legal background”.

“I don’t want this to drag on. I want to get conclusions and then act on them,” he told reporters at Parliament House.

“This isn’t something that can be just dismissed.

“This is something that goes to our very system of government which the solicitor-general’s advice makes clear.”

Mr Albanese said the Morrison government had “thrown out” the usual checks and balances the Westminster system of government imposes on Australia’s parliament.

With NCA Newswire