Former foreign minister tells Senate committee looking at her new job she has not broken ministerial code of conduct

This article is more than 1 year old

This article is more than 1 year old

Julie Bishop has said serving MPs and officials should be held responsible for not meeting with former ministers.

In a submission to a Senate committee examining whether Bishop and Christopher Pyne breached ministerial standards by accepting post-retirement jobs relating to their former portfolios, the long-serving foreign minister claims the ministerial code of conduct would be “more workable and enforceable” if it shifted the onus to those still accountable to parliament.

“The onus could and arguably should be placed upon current serving officials to not hold meetings with former ministers for the period of 18 months after those ministers cease to hold office,” Bishop said.

“Current ministers and government officials are subject to ongoing scrutiny through the parliament, including question time and Senate estimates, and by the media.

Senate inquiry into Pyne and Bishop jobs sparks standoff with department boss Read more

“There is obvious redress available with regard to current serving ministers and officials, should they breach this protocol.”

Bishop has defended her role on the board of foreign aid firm Palladium, and says she remains in compliance with the code that prevents former ministers from lobbying or holding business meetings with members of the government, parliament, public service or defence force on any matter for which she held ministerial responsibility.

She resigned as foreign minister in August 2018, and reminded the committee that she had not “attended any meetings of the Morrison government cabinet”.

Bishop also gives an undertaking not to take personal advantage of information to which she had access as a minister, “where that information is not generally available to the public”.

“My personal conduct since retiring from the Cabinet and the Parliament meets the requirement to be consistent with the dignity, reputation and integrity of the Parliament.”

The submission comes ahead of a committee meeting on Friday that will hear from the outgoing head of the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet, Martin Parkinson.

Parkinson initially refused to appear before the committee after he conducted an inquiry into the potential breach by Bishop and Pyne and found no wrongdoing.

But the chair of the committee, Jenny McAllister, insisted he appear, saying the “committee has determined it has questions it wishes to ask you”.

“In any event, with respect, it is a matter for the committee to decide what evidence is relevant to its inquiry,” she wrote.

“It is therefore the committee’s expectation that you will make yourself available to appear at a public hearing.”