The Albanese Government has taken further steps to ensure transparency on ministerial appointments, a key recommendation of the Bell Inquiry.
Regulations, approved by the Governor-General today, will make sure all ministerial appointments since the election of the Albanese Government are reported with transparency.
The Ministers of State Amendment Act 2023 took effect in November 2023, and in doing so, it drew a line in the sand. It meant that all ministerial appointments going forward would be required to be publicly reported.
By introducing these regulations, the Albanese Government has chosen to ensure ministerial arrangements in the entire term of this government are subject to those same requirements, too.
The previous Liberal-National government undermined Australian democracy. The Albanese Government has worked to restore integrity to the federal government, and these regulations are an important part of delivering on that promise.
Australia’s Parliament is built on the tradition of the Westminster system and the principle of responsible government.
When those standards were breached by the previous government it undermined Australia’s democratic foundations. It undermined who we are as a nation.
The Ministers of State Amendment Act 2023 and its regulations will ensure this deception can never again be perpetrated against the Australian people.
These regulations enhance transparency, uphold democracy and restore integrity to Government. Making sure we all know who is accountable for the decisions that affect Australian lives.
Following the commencement of the Ministers of State Amendment Act 2023, the Official Secretary to the Governor-General is now required to make a notifiable instrument specifying ministry arrangements.
These arrangements include:
- which ministers are administering which departments
- what ministers are responsible for administering
- when an acting arrangement is in place.
These changes will also apply when ministerial appointments are revoked by the Governor-General.
When these regulations come into force early next week, all of these requirements will apply to the entire term of the Albanese Government, too.
The most recent Ministry changes can be found in the Ministers of State (Notification of Appointment and Direction) Instrument 2024 and copies of the instruments of appointment are available on the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet’s website.
Quotes attributable to Assistant Minister Patrick Gorman:
“The former government’s secret ministries scandal undermined our democratic system of government.”
“Australians deserve to know who is responsible for the decisions that affect their lives. Our Government has now made sure that they always will be.”
“These enduring reforms ensure transparency in ministerial arrangements.”
“Never again will secrecy or deception be a part of the Australian Government’s ministerial arrangements. Nor should it have ever been.”
“These are important changes that demonstrate our commitment to implementing the Bell Inquiry recommendations and to restoring integrity to Government.”