Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Until the extraordinary revelations last year, I could not have imagined that this legislation, the Ministers of State Amendment Bill 2022, would be needed. After last year, we know just how important it is. When we gathered for the censure motion against the member for Cook in November, I noted that such a motion was 'as rare as it is grave', and that the fact that it had become necessary constituted 'a profoundly sad moment in the life of our national parliament'. But, as I also said, to ignore what had happened would have added up to something far worse. It would have amounted to complicity. It would have been tantamount to us saying, 'Well, that was okay.'

We have seen no regret from the member for Cook, no sense that he has come to grips with the gravity of what he did: a secretive and calculated course of action that was nothing short of a trashing of our democracy. This is not something that can be swept under the carpet, nor can it be brushed off as partisan politics. When it came to the member for Cook's secret portfolios, the explanations that were put forward were described by Ms Bell as 'not easy to understand' and 'difficult to reconcile' with the facts. The implications were there very clearly in the Bell inquiry. There was 'a risk of conflict' if different ministers wanted to exercise the same power inconsistently. Ms Bell confirmed the Solicitor-General's view that, in her words, 'the principles of responsible government were "fundamentally undermined"' because the member for Cook, the then Prime Minister, 'was not "responsible" to the parliament, and through the parliament to the electors, for the departments he was appointed to administer'. It undermined public confidence in government. It was, according to Ms Bell, 'corrosive of trust in government'. The public didn't know, according to the Bell inquiry, something that it was entitled to know.

I see the member for Cook has taken to the pages of the Australian Financial Review recently to give us self-righteous lectures on the need to uphold and strengthen Western civilisation. How extraordinary to read such words from a man whose actions were so cavalier, so calculating and so cynical—actions that undermined our democracy, a democracy that is one of the greatest representations of that civilisation he professes to respect. It could be one of the most perfect self-awareness vacuums we've ever seen, but the evidence points to a simple truth, and that is that the member for Cook either just doesn't get it or does not care.

The consequences of his actions are a taint upon this place. His behaviour has been a disgrace to the party that shares the benches with him. To accumulate portfolios so methodically and with such compulsive secrecy is an insult to every member who put their hand up to faithfully serve their communities, everyone who has come here to better our nation, and everyone who has come here to be the best parliamentarian they can be and not a self-serving politician.

The thing we should never lose sight of here is this one simple fact: government belongs to all Australians. Our democracy belongs to all Australians, and it is such a precious thing. Together, we have carefully nurtured and strengthened it, standing on the shoulders of the generations that have gone before us. It is resilient, but it is not impervious and it is not invincible. If we ever want to be reminded how vulnerable even the most venerable old democracies are, all we need to do is to look around the world. We have seen it overseas, not the least of which was the assault on the Capitol Building in the United States. We cannot take our democracy for granted.

We owe Australian a parliament that is the very best it can be—a parliament where we know who ministers are and who are accountable, a parliament where the identity of each portfolio holder is not a matter of mystery or a secret that can be revealed only by the lottery of guesswork. This should be a place of open and respectful debate, a strong and central institution that is defined by accountability and integrity, by achievement, by outcomes, by a powerful sense that all of us who enter this place do so proudly and firmly in the service of the Australian people. People who are elected to this place have different political outlooks and ideologies, but I believe that, overwhelmingly, people come for the right reasons. They come because we are all united by a love for our country and because to be a parliamentarian is to be part of one of the great institutions that, at its best, is one of the pillars on which Australia stands. I look around the chamber and I know that, although we have differences, we share so much common ground—a belief that this place represents the interests of the Australian people, a belief that in this place we are able to do what matters and what is right, a belief that this place transcends its imperfections to be the most powerful and effective embodiment of our democracy. In doing so, let us show Australia that we and all that this parliament represents are worthy of their trust and faith.

With this legislation we work to be worthy of all that by ensuring there will never, ever be a repeat or a sequel of this corrosive, undemocratic action. We have, in this government, a system of Westminster that it is derived from. We also have a cabinet system of government where the prime minister has often been described as the first among equals. But the prime minister of the day is not above the cabinet process and is not above the parliament or accountability. That is why this legislation is important—not because I think there will be someone who will come along and think that it's a good idea to appoint themselves to multiple ministries without telling anyone but because we thought that would never happen in the first place. That is why we need this legislation—to provide that assurance to the Australian people that it will indeed never happen again. I commend the bill to the House.

Mark Dreyfus (Isaacs, Australian Labor Party, Cabinet Secretary) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank members for their contribution to this debate on the Ministers of State Amendment Bill 2022. The inquiry into the appointment of the former prime minister to administer multiple departments, led by former High Court Justice the Hon. Virginia Bell AC, has made an important contribution to enhancing transparency and accountability in our democracy. The primary purpose of this bill is to implement the first six recommendations of that inquiry. The implementation of these recommendations ensures that the Australian public can have full confidence that this breach of trust can never happen again. As mentioned in the second reading speech, the bill will implement reforms to ensure the Australian people are able to access information relating to the composition of the federal executive council, those appointed to administer certain departments of state, and the high offices that ministers of state hold. This bill demonstrates the government's readiness to act promptly to restore the Australian people's confidence in our federal system of government and to rebuild integrity in public sector institutions, processes and officials.

The inquiry sought to find out how the situation happened, why it happened and who knew about it, and it reflected on the culture that enabled it to happen. It is essential that we have transparency in our government processes, because our system of parliamentary democracy relies upon conventions and the Westminster traditions of checks and balances. As was made very clear by the Solicitor-General:

… it is impossible for the Parliament to hold Ministers to account for the administration of departments if it does not know which Ministers are responsible for which departments.

As such, Ms Bell and her team are commended for their service in leading this inquiry. The government has accepted and implemented all of Ms Bell's other recommendations. In addition, members may be aware that the Ministers of State Act 1952 has been listed under the finance portfolio in the administrative arrangements order. On 8 June 2023 the Governor-General agreed to the Prime Minister's recommendations that the act transferred to the Prime Minister's portfolio. This reflects the provisions currently in the act and the measures that will be implemented by this bill.

The passage of this bill also demonstrates that the government is delivering on its promise to restore trust and integrity to federal politics. The centrepiece of this is a powerful, transparent and independent National Anti-Corruption Commission. The measures in the bill will provide greater integrity and transparency around the process of appointing elected officials to high office, especially to ensure that we have a system of government where there are checks and balances and where one person cannot again garner powers without adequate and warranted accountability to the Australian people and the Australian parliament.

Question agreed to.

Bill read a second time.