SHORTEN LEFT WITH EGG ON HIS FACE
BILL’S CITIZENSHIP SCRAMBLE:
HALF-A-MILLION Australians will be forced back to the polls within weeks after a High Court ruling triggered a domino effect which knocked four Labor MPs out of the federal parliament.
The court’s stunning decision has humiliated Opposition Leader Bill Shorten, who repeatedly maintained there was “no cloud over any of our people” when the dual-citizenship crisis engulfed the parliament last year.
By-elections will be held in five seats across four states next month, and the Turnbull Government, now selling its Budget and a seven-year income tax plan, is in striking distance to win at least three.
Labor’s “strict vetting” of its candidates failed to save ACT senator Katy Gallagher: The High Court found she had failed to renounce her British citizenship in time for the 2016 election.
That ruling prompted crossbench MP Rebekha Sharkie to resign, forcing Labor MPs Josh Wilson, Susan Lamb and Justine Keay, all of them in similar positions, to follow suit.
All three Labor MPs refused to apologise for causing polls that will cost taxpayers an estimated $2 million each.
The resignations, on top of Labor MP Tim Hammond’s decision to quit his seat of Perth for family reasons, set the stage for by-elections in Tasmania, Queensland, and Western and South Australia.
Taxpayers have already copped a $11.6 million legal bill for the constitutional crisis, which has now forced 15 senators and members of the House of Representatives out of parliament and prompted seven by-elections.
When the saga exploded last August, Mr Shorten “politely declined” an offer from Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull to refer any Labor MPs with question marks over them to the High Court, writing: “The Labor Party has the strictest processes in place to ensure all candidates are compliant with the Constitution.”
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said last night: “Like any of his guarantees, it’s not worth a cracker. You can’t trust Bill Shorten.”
Labor’s defence had earlier been thrown into doubt when it was revealed Victorian MP David Feeney lacked paperwork to prove he had renounced his UK citizenship.
Ms Gallagher was then referred to the High Court in what would be a test case for her three Labor colleagues.
Mr Shorten said yesterday Labor had acted “in good faith” on legal advice, and the court “set a stricter test” yesterday.
Asked if he would apologise, he said: “Our lawyers were clear. It’s been the same advice for 20 years.”
Ms Gallagher said the High Court’s decision was “very deeply disappointing” and she was “very sorry (to voters) that this disruption has occurred”.
But Mr Wilson maintained he had done nothing wrong and it would have been “effectively impossible” for him to have renounced his UK citizenship before nominating to run for the WA seat of Fremantle in the 2016 election.
Ms Keay, who represented Braddon in Tasmania, also refused to apologise, and said the citizenship issue had been a “difficult time”.
“It’s been a character-building experience. But I can hold my head high for being upfront and honest with my electorate ... I’ve been criticised for being too honest,” she said.
Ms Lamb, who represented Longman in Queensland, had said her “traumatic” family history had prevented her from getting her parents’ marriage certificate to provide the required evidence to renounce British citizenship.
She remained in parliament for months despite publishing legal advice effectively showing she was still a dual citizen.
Mr Shorten said he was “confident” she would be eligible to nominate for the byelection, though he was “not aware of each piece of paper” regarding her status.
Ms Sharkie apologised to her SA electorate of Mayo for the “inconvenience a byelection will cause”.
She said she had been approached to join the Liberals but would stand for the Centre Alliance party, formerly the Nick Xenophon Team.
Her rival will probably be Georgina Downer, the daughter of long-serving Mayo MP and former foreign affairs minister Alexander Downer.