A bill to ensure the national cabinet of Australia’s political leaders can keep its workings secret has been introduced to federal parliament.
The bill introduced by minister Alan Tudge on Thursday will cloak advice and information in confidentiality, similar to the cabinet-in-confidence seal that protects the federal cabinet’s deliberations.
The prime minister and state and territory leaders agreed in March last year to establish national cabinet to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The national cabinet began from a realisation that if the commonwealth, states and territories each tried to go their own way, Australia would fall short in its response to the pandemic,” Mr Tudge told federal parliament.
Since then, the body has seen leaders square off over hotel quarantine, lockdowns and the vaccine rollout.
Advice and discussions in national cabinet and its committees are covered by the proposed laws, as well as information on how financial assistance for states and territories is handed out.
“Like the commonwealth cabinet and its committees, the maintenance of confidentiality is essential to enable full and frank discussion between the representatives of all jurisdictions,” Mr Tudge said.
