Christian Porter says ministers can direct departments as new email suggests involvement of Scott Morrison’s office in awarding grants

This article is more than 7 months old

This article is more than 7 months old

Christian Porter has defended the “broad power” of ministers to direct their departments as he awaits advice about whether the former sports minister Bridget McKenzie had legal authority to give $100m of sports grants.

The prime minister has also been drawn back into the saga, with a new email revealed by the Ten Network on Friday suggesting involvement by Scott Morrison’s staff in where the grants were targeted.

The new email, from an adviser to McKenzie to Sports Australia, says the prime minister’s office had advised them to make a “slight adjustment” to the list of funded projects on the basis “some of the projects on the list [had been] funded under another grants program”.

Morrison has said the program was administered by McKenzie and Sports Australia, and has characterised the involvement of his office as providing information “based on the representations made to us”. The prime minister’s office told Ten neither Morrison nor his office directed the minister to fund a specific project.

In an interview with Guardian Australia on Friday, the attorney general clarified that Morrison did not ask him to seek advice about whether the community sport infrastructure grant program was unconstitutional, as experts including academic Anne Twomey have suggested.

McKenzie’s position in the Morrison government ministry now hinges on the secretary of the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet’s review of whether she breached ministerial standards in her handling of the program.

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Morrison asked Porter to “clarify” and “address” the legal issues raised in a scathing auditor-general’s report, which warned it was “not evident” what McKenzie’s authority was to approve grants and overturn Sports Australia’s recommendations.

Porter told Guardian Australia he hoped to “finalise the process” of receiving advice from the Australian government solicitor and advise the prime minister about McKenzie’s authority on Friday.

Asked whether the government could retrospectively authorise grants already handed to clubs, Porter replied he would not “presume the outcome of a process I haven’t finished yet”.

“What I would note is this has been variously reported as an investigation, or some kind of legal review.

“I was asked a single question by the prime minister, which related to a question raised, but not answered, by the auditor-general revolving around section 11 of the Sports Australia Act.”

That section states the sports minister may give directions to Sports Australia. The auditor-general noted the existence of this power but said it wasn’t used.

Porter said “ministers have a broad power that exists under the Westminster system with respect to their departments”.

Asked about concerns there was no head of power in the constitution to support the federal government giving sports grants, Porter replied: “I wasn’t asked that question by the prime minister, I don’t think that question was raised by the auditor-general either.”

The auditor-general said it was a “significant shortcoming” of the program that “there are no records evidencing that the minister was advised of the legal basis on which the minister could undertake an approval role, and it is not evident to the [Australian National Audit Office] what the legal authority was”.

Despite the finding, senior government figures including Morrison and the deputy prime minister, Michael McCormack, have defended McKenzie, arguing that no rules were broken in the administration of the grants program and all projects were eligible.

The opposition leader, Anthony Albanese, said the review by Phil Gaetjens, Morrison’s former chief of staff and Australia’s top public servant, was “unnecessary” given the auditor-general’s findings. He said that review was due on Friday.

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Albanese said McKenzie’s ongoing role as agriculture minister and deputy Nationals leader was “untenable” and argued it was beside the point that all projects funded were eligible.

“I’m eligible to play, as someone registered with Tennis Australia, in the Davis Cup next time it comes around,” he said. “Chances are, I won’t be picked because it’s merit that counts.”

Albanese complained that 12 applications received high rankings from Sport Australia for women’s change rooms but did not get funding while a rugby club received funding for a women’s change room despite having no women’s team.

“This is a farce and it’s about time that Bridget McKenzie resigned her position. And if she won’t do that, the prime minister should sack her,” he said.

“The only thing that could possibly be holding that back is the direct involvement of the prime minister’s office in this [program] that has seen legitimate sporting clubs miss out in favour of this political process.”

Morrison has suggested his office’s role was limited to relaying representations from MPs to the sports minister.