Secret powers needed during coronavirus crisis: Former Australian PM Scott Morrison

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is seeking an opinion from the solicitor-general on the legality of some of Scott Morrison’s moves.

Scott Morrison said on August 17 that giving himself extra powers when he was Australia’s Prime Minister was necessary during the coronavirus crisis, as criticism rose the moves were deceptive and undemocratic.

Current Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is seeking an opinion from the solicitor-general on the legality of some of Mr. Morrison’s moves.

Many of Mr. Morrison’s own colleagues were blindsided by his decision to secretly appoint himself to five Ministerial roles, which have only been revealed in recent days. Some have called for him to resign from Parliament, where he is now an Opposition lawmaker after losing the general election to Mr. Albanese earlier this year.

But Mr. Morrison told reporters in Sydney that while he apologised for causing offense to his colleagues, he stood by his actions.

The expectation early in the COVID-19 crisis was that as Prime Minister, he was responsible for everything — “every drop of rain, every strain of the virus, everything that occurred over that period of time,” Mr. Morrison said. “I believed it was necessary to have authority, to have what were effectively emergency powers, to exercise in extreme situations that would be unforeseen, that would enable me to act in the national interests.”

He said he'd rather be criticised for overstepping the mark than for not taking action. Asked why he didn't let his own Cabinet colleagues know about the appointments, let alone the broader public, Mr. Morrison said his moves could have been misunderstood.

“I was concerned that these issues could have been misconstrued and misunderstood and undermined the confidence of Ministers in the performance of their duties at that time and I did not consider that to be in the country’s interest,” Mr. Morrison said.