Scott Morrison has dismissed fresh reports he’s trying to muscle in on other ministers’ portfolios. Source: AAP
IMMIGRATION Minister Scott Morrison has dismissed fresh reports he’s trying to muscle in on other ministers’ portfolios as “conspiracy nonsense”.
THE ABC reports Mr Morrison had been agitating to take control of Australia’s Ebola response.
It comes on the heels of reports he wanted his new Australian Border Force to take responsibility for biosecurity – currently the domain of Agriculture Minister Barnaby Joyce – and to take in parts of the foreign affairs or attorney-general’s portfolios. But Mr Morrison denies the claims. “The reports you’ve put to air today regarding this matter are complete and utter rubbish,” Mr Morrison told ABC radio. “People are hyperventilating a bit about this issue. “We’re just doing our job to protect our borders.” The ABC quotes one unnamed minister as saying Mr Morrison is “annoying everyone” on the national security committee of cabinet. And it quotes another anonymous coalition source as saying that Mr Morrison’s behaviour is “out of control” and his ego is “getting in the way of his judgment”. Mr Morrison said neither he nor his department had put forward any proposals for taking a greater role in relation to the Ebola response. He said Mr Dutton had been doing an outstanding job. “What we’re focused on is protecting our borders, doing our job to stop the boats and dealing with the many other threats that present at the border,” Mr Morrison said. “That’s what I’ve always done and I think my record speaks for itself.” Foreign Minister Julie Bishop, also a member of the national security committee, said it had regularly discussed the problem. “We are still in negotiations with other countries about how Australian health workers could be evacuated or treated should they be working in west Africa,” she told the ABC. Prime Minister Tony Abbott also discussed the epidemic with US President Barack Obama overnight. The two leaders agreed the international community must act boldly and quickly to halt the spread of Ebola, a White House spokesperson said. President Obama thanked Mr Abbott for Australia’s financial contributions and they discussed additional commitments. Labor and the Greens are worried about Australia’s preparedness to deal with potential Ebola outbreaks in the region, after conflicting evidence given to Senate committees on Wednesday. “We’ve heard one story from the chief medical officer, a completely different story from the head of the health department and a different story again from our defence force personnel,” deputy Labor leader Tanya Plibersek told reporters in Canberra. Greens health spokesman Richard di Natale said it would be weeks until Australia was ready to start containment work in the region because there was no one here with specific expertise in Ebola. Ms Plibersek seized on President Obama’s request, along with other international calls, to renew her call that Australia should send health teams into the fray. The government says it currently can’t guarantee the safe evacuation of any workers it sent to Africa.