Ryan launches GetUp! attack during AEC estimates

Special Minister of State Scott Ryan has attacked activist group GetUp! for questioning the integrity of the AEC.

Special Minister of State Senator Scott Ryan. Picture: AAP Image/Mick Tsikas.

Special Minister of State Scott Ryan has attacked Left Wing activist group GetUp! for questioning the integrity of the Australian Electoral Commission and importing the “downsides of Americanised democracy” into the Australian political system.

The AEC defended itself on Tuesday night after it was challenged by GetUp! in an e-mail to the group’s members which claimed that a preliminary review of its status as an independent organisation appeared “stacked against us” and used “cherrypicked facts.”

GetUp! national director Paul Oosting was quick to defend the group’s independence, suggesting that “hard right” figures within government were “desperate to undermine our movement.”

But Electoral Commissioner Tom Rogers told a Senate estimates hearing the process being conducted was undertaken independently of government. He said the review of GetUp’s status was also being conducted in response to a request accepted by the AEC at a previous parliamentary committee hearing.

“We’re an independent entity,” he said. “There’s been no member of a parliament during my tenure in this position that has directed me or tried to direct me to do anything from either side of politics. And if that did occur, we would reject that in any case.”

“I would not describe the process that we are currently going through with any associated entity as cherry picking facts.”

Being classed as an “associated entity” would force GetUp! to lodge financial disclosure returns with much stricter conditions and its standing in the community could be damaged if it was seen to be a campaigning arm of Labor or the Greens.

Mr Rogers said that an “associated entity” under the Electoral Act was defined as operating “wholly or to a significant extent for the benefit of one or more registered political parties.”

Senator Ryan also attacked the decision by GetUp! to question the integrity of the review process being conducted by the AEC.

“It is rare despite this being a robust area of public policy for a significant actor in the system to effectively accuse the AEC of acting on a government agenda,” he said.

“I have not seen that before in my nearly ten years here… And quite frankly if we want to head down the path of what I might say are some of the downsides of Americanised democracy where people impugn the motives, managed and actions of an independent election regulator of which this country should be proud, then we are setting a new low bar.”

“And quite frankly, GetUp! should be ashamed... it’s a new low and GetUp! quite frankly owe the AEC an apology for the words they’ve used.”