Their fault, not mine: PM blames Labor for failing to create national integrity watchdog
Scott Morrison has denied he broke a key 2019 election promise to establish a national integrity commission, arguing the proposal did not have enough support to pass parliament’s upper house.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison says Labor would not support his proposal for an integrity commission. (AAP Image/Mick Tsikas)
During a visit to northern Tasmania on Thursday, the prime minister said he did not want to create a “kangaroo court”.
He was speaking before a car in his security detail crashed after rolling down an embankment on the way to another event in Tasmania but no one has been seriously injured.
The car carrying two federal and two Tasmanian police officers rolled near Elizabeth Town.(Photo: ABC News/Michael Brooks)
The prime minister was not involved in the crash near Elizabeth Town which involved another car hitting the rear of the security detail vehicle while trying to merge.
The two Tasmanian police officers and two federal police officers involved were conscious when transferred to hospital for further assessment.
Family members have been notified and are being kept up to date about their condition.
The driver of the other vehicle was not injured.
Morrison rejected suggestions that his lack of support for establishing the integrity commission was designed to protect senior members of the government.
“I have seen the lives destroyed by a commission such as that, which becomes a kangaroo court, and goes around and seems to operate through politics and shaming people,” he said.
“I have seen the damage that causes, I don’t want to see something of that nature.”
Morrison was campaigning in the marginal seat of Bass, held on a meagre 0.4 per cent margin by Liberal MP Bridget Archer, who crossed the floor of parliament to vote for a debate on a federal integrity body.
Archer, who appeared alongside the prime minister at a forestry facility on Thursday, said such a commission needed bipartisan support.
“Nothing will move forward until the politics is taken out,” she said.
“I would like to see the positive promotion of integrity in public life, there are a lot of ways to achieve that, one of those may be through integrity commission legislation, but there are other ways to achieve that.”
While campaigning in the NSW seat of Hunter, Labor leader Anthony Albanese said the lack of an integrity commission highlighted a failed election commitment by the government.
“(Scott Morrison) made it clear that he wouldn’t have a national integrity commission during the next term with this rather bizarre statement that the reason was because Labor didn’t support his model,” he told reporters in the regional town of Cessnock.
“The reason why this prime minister doesn’t want an anti-corruption commission is sitting on his frontbench.”
Albanese was in the electorate to announce an urgent care clinic would be built in Cessnock, one of 50 promised clinics across the country should Labor win office.
Asked where the health workers would come from to staff the clinics given current shortages, the Labor leader said there would be further announcements about training for GPs during the campaign.
The opposition has also announced a promise to keep Centrelink shopfronts open, as well as hire 200 new workers.
The opposition said almost 30 shopfronts have closed under the government, with Labor guaranteeing there would not be a net reduction.