Former Australian prime minister Scott Morrison. Photo: AFP
By political reporter Georgia Hitch
The federal government will move a censure motion against former Australian prime minister Scott Morrison over his decision to secretly appoint himself to a number of extra ministries.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced on Monday that cabinet had agreed to move the motion this week, the final sitting week for the year.
As Labor has a majority in the House of Representatives, the motion will pass.
Morrison secretly appointed himself to administer several ministries throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, including to the treasury and home affairs portfolios.
Late last week, a report into his actions found they were "corrosive" to trust in government.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese. Photo:
Albanese said cabinet had agreed to implement all six recommendations from the report.
"We will introduce legislation later this week to make sure that this can never, ever happen again," he said.
"And this week, as well, the house will be moving a censure motion [against] the member for Cook as a result of the findings of Virginia Bell and the inquiry.
"This is about accountability of our democratic system, and whether the parliament was functioning properly, and about the relationship between the prime minister and the people of Australia, who expect [elected officials] to be held to account through our parliamentary processes."
Censure motions allow MPs to express their disapproval of their colleagues but do not have any direct legal consequences.
They were uncommon and it was very rare for a former prime minister to face one.
The opposition will oppose the motion, which Liberal frontbencher James Paterson described as politically motivated.
"I don't think it's an accident the prime minister released the [Virginia Bell] report on the Friday afternoon before a Victorian election, trying to damage our brand and seek political advantage in the house," he said.
After the release of the report last week, Morrison said in a statement on social media, that his decision to appoint himself to the ministries was during a period in the pandemic where there was a need for urgency.
"As prime minister, my awareness of issues regarding national security and the national interest was broader than that known to individual ministers and certainly to the inquiry," Morrison said.
"This limits the ability for third parties to draw definitive conclusions on such matters."
But that was something Bell, who oversaw the inquiry, refuted in her report, saying the powers he gave himself over some of the portfolios had "little if any connection to the pandemic".
- ABC