Mamma mia! Cabinet rocked by Italian fiasco

The government will fight to keep Matt Canavan in parliament, taking his dual citizenship case to the High Court.

Attorney-General George Brandis, left, and former resources minister Matt Canavan yesterday. Picture: AAP

The government will fight to keep Nationals minister Matt Canavan in federal parliament, taking his case to the High Court, after he ­became the third MP within a fortnight to fall foul of a basic constitutional requirement preventing dual nationals from running for ­office.

Senator Canavan last night made a shock announcement that he would resign from cabinet as Resources and Northern Australian Minister because his Australian-born mother, Maria, who has Italian parents, had signed him up to Italian citizenship in 2006 without his knowledge.

His case will be challenged in the High Court after the government formed an initial view he had not breached section 44 of the Constitution, which prohibits an MP from sitting in parliament if they hold citizenship of another country.

Maria’s concerns about her son’s citizenship were prompted by the resignations of former Greens co-deputy leaders Larissa Waters and Scott Ludlam, who were born in Canada and New Zealand respectively and caught by the section 44 trap.

“While I knew that my mother had become an Italian citizen I had no knowledge that I myself had become an Italian citizen,” Senator Canavan said. “Until last week I had no suspicion that I could be an Italian citizen. I was not born in Italy and have never been to Italy.

“In the short time available I have not been able to obtain definitive legal advice as to whether my registration as an Italian citizen, without my knowledge or consent, was valid under Italian law. I am seeking to obtain that ­advice presently.”

The revelation led University of NSW constitutional law expert George Williams to speculate that a “significant number of MPs” may have served for years in federal parliament despite being ineligible under the Constitution.

A One Nation spokesman said last night the minor party would push for a Senate inquiry into the eligibility of all sitting and former senators under section 44. The spokesman said Greens leader Richard Di Natale had indicated support for the proposed inquiry, but The Australian understands the party is yet to make a formal decision.

Professor Williams said Senator Canavan, who has not quit the Senate, unlike Ms Waters and Mr Ludlam, had a chance of successfully appealing in the court.

“If citizenship was acquired on his behalf without his knowledge then, yes, there is an argument he can raise because the High Court has said that a person must take all reasonable steps to divest themselves of their second citizenship. The question here is what could he reasonably do if he really did lack that knowledge?” he said. “It could go either way. I wouldn’t be surprised if there are more (cases of dual citizenship) to come.”

Professor Williams said it would be more be difficult for Ms Waters and Mr Ludlam as they were born overseas but did not check their citizenship status. However, he said there was a case to make for Ms Waters, due to the difficulty in determining the state of Canadian law, which changed after she was born.

Standing alongside Senator Canavan in Brisbane last night, Attorney-General George Brandis said the government was seeking advice from experts in Italian citizenship law and would test his election in the High Court.

“It is the government’s preliminary view that, because the registration, was obtained without Senator Canavan’s knowledge or consent, that he is not in breach of section 44 of the Constitution,” Senator Brandis said.

“Nevertheless, in view of the legal uncertainty concerning the matter, when the Senate convenes on Tuesday week, the government will move to refer the matter for determination by the High Court.”

It is likely that a full bench of the High Court would determine the matter, given it has not previously ruled on this type of situation and any decision would set a significant legal precedent. It is also possible for the court to appoint a “friend of the court” to run a contrary argument to that being made by Senator Canavan’s legal representative, so that both sides of the case are properly made.

Professor Williams said it could take the High Court months to reach a decision, depending on the evidence, with the government also shedding no light yesterday on how long the matter could take to resolve or what any additional costs to taxpayers could look like.

A Liberal source said the task of ensuring candidates were not dual citizens rested with state divisions but was confident there were control mechanisms in place to help avert a situation in which a lower-house MP had to step down, throwing the government’s one-seat majority in jeopardy.

In the wake of the Greens citizenship bungles, Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce warned the government could not afford to “start throwing rocks” at Ms Waters and Mr Ludlam as their mistakes could be made by others.

Malcolm Turnbull did not hold back, declaring it showed “incredible sloppiness” on their part.

Former Liberal senator Joanna Lindgren was No 6 on the Liberal National Party’s Queensland ballot and would be the most likely replacement for Senator Canavan if he was disqualified from parliament and a recount ordered.

Additional reporting: Michael McKenna