After surreptitiously swearing himself into five cabinet positions as prime minister, Scott Morrison’s old employer called on him to resign from parliament.
While Mr. Morrison served as managing director of Tourism Australia during the Howard administration from 2004 to 2006, former tourism minister Fran Bailey alleged she experienced bullying from him.
Due to allegations that he showed little regard for coworkers, she gave the then-Tourist Australia board chair Tim Fischer the authority to terminate his employment.
Ms. Bailey said that Mr. Morrison, 16 years later, exhibited the same behavior when he covertly swore himself into five separate ministries in 2020 and 2021.
After covertly swearing himself into five ministerial jobs as prime minister, Scott Morrison has been urged to leave politics by the former minister for tourism in Australia.
While Mr. Morrison served as managing director of Tourism Australia during the Howard administration from 2004 to 2006, Fran Bailey alleged that he bullied her.
A disagreement over the well-known tourist ad “Where the Bloody Hell Are You?” was, according to Ms. Bailey, the last straw. Model Lara Bingle featured in the 2006 (seen in photo).
She told the Sydney Morning Herald, “What has changed my mind is that all of those qualities that make up Scott Morrison — the secrecy… the absolute conviction that only he can do a job, the lack of consultation with those closest to him — were evident 16 years ago, and perhaps we’re seeing the end result of those now.
For the last 15 years, Ms. Bailey has remained silent about the reasons for Mr. Morrison’s termination as managing director.
Since his covert cabinet positions were known and demands for the former prime minister to resign have been louder, she has only opened up.
It basically boiled down to a total loss of trust, and she indicated that when that happens, the managing director of an organization must be replaced.
It’s not something that I have brooded over for all those 16 years, but as he progressed through the government, I got more worried, and I was astounded when he was elected prime minister.
I believe it has been a disaster for the Liberal Party and for our country because I knew what he was truly like to deal with.
A disagreement over the well-known tourist ad “Where the Bloody Hell Are You?” was, according to Ms. Bailey, the last straw.
The $184 million taxpayer-funded campaign was managed by the global marketing firm Saatchi.
Ms. Bailey said that Mr. Morrison ‘point-blank refused’ to provide paperwork and failed to explain why he selected that specific advertising firm.
When he was fired from the position in 2006, Mr. Morrison struck a settlement with Tourism Australia that covered all performance incentives.
Mr. Morrison was approached by Daily Mail Australia for a response.
The incident involving Scott Morrison’s covert employment was officially investigated by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.
Virginia Bell, a retired judge on the High Court, will undertake the investigation and submit her findings to Mark Dreyfus, the attorney general, by November 25.
Although Mr. Albanese predicted Mr. Morrison would cooperate, he noted that the investigation lacked the authority of a royal commission to force witnesses to testify.