DEAR News Of The Area,

I APOLOGISE that I am writing about something that occurred in the recent past but there are things I have difficulty accepting.

When it first came to light that Scott Morrison had elevated himself to three portfolios he was interviewed by Ben Fordham (2GB), Ben asked if there was any more than the three announced and Scott Morrison replied “No Ben not to my knowledge”.

Within a couple of days it had grown to five.

The actions of Scott Morrison were condemned by many and the subsequent investigation indicated that his actions were lawful and stated “The end result is that, to the extent that the public and the Parliament are not informed of appointments that have been made under [section] 64 of the Constitution, the principles of responsible government are fundamentally undermined”, this was the advice.

The Labor party now in government tabled a censure motion against Scott Morrison and he became the first ex-PM to be censured.

On that day Bridget Archer (Liberal MP for Bass) crossed the floor and voted to censure Morrison for his actions.

Bridget Archer showed guts, integrity, honesty and a strength of character I had not seen in a long time.

I would hope that the people of Bass are proud to have her as their MP and appreciate her desire to protect our democracy.

Then my thoughts went to Pat.

Where was Pat Conaghan when our democracy, open and transparent and honest government needed to be defended?

I believe this transcends which party you vote for, whether Nationals, Liberal, Labor, Greens or Independent, we need our elected representative in Canberra to look after all our interests.

To protect our democracy, to make sure we have an open and transparent government, to make sure that we have honesty and integrity in government.

Unfortunately, I do not think Pat Conaghan will stand up for us so I suggest we do not have a voice in Canberra.

Whether it be state or federal members of Parliament we need someone who will protect and fight for our democracy and make sure we have honesty and integrity in government.

Thank you,
Colin HUTTON,
Thora.