Former prime minister Scott Morrison went behind the backs of his minsters and the public and appointed himself to five ministries. This week, his colleagues and opponents found out.
First, the Liberal Party can ill afford a byelection right now. Morrison’s NSW division is gearing up for a state election in March, the coffers are bare after the federal election, and there is a risk, albeit slight, the party could lose Morrison’s Sutherland Shire seat of Cook if there were a byelection any time soon.Second, Morrison, along with Malcolm Turnbull, is unique among former prime ministers in that he is not entitled to a parliamentary pension once retired.
“Only I could really understand the weight of responsibilities that was on my shoulders and no one else’s,” he said. Back then, Morrison did rescue the party, steering it almost single-handedly to the “miracle” victory in 2019, and securing himself a spot in the party’s pantheon of achievers. “Convention matters, even for countries with written constitutions; complacency over flouting convention is insidious – a message that should reverberate in democracies half a world away from Canberra, including in the original Westminster.”Those who worked with Morrison and never knew about his ministry grab are feeling a mixture of bewilderment, betrayal and anger. Karen Andrews, who had her home affairs ministry secretly duplicated, has called publicly for him to quit.
And this juxtaposes splendidly against the orderly, calm and cabinet-driven process of government that Albanese has reintroduced since the election. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will be briefed on Monday by the solicitor-general as to whether any illegality was involved.Morrison said this week he would co-operate with an inquiry or some other investigation, so long as it was a “positive process” and not a show trial. He maintains he did what he did because he had to.
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