As the backlash against the Morrison government over its mishandling of the Brereton report grows, the parliamentary gynarchy is swinging into action. The military community are furious that the report, alleging war crimes committed in Afghanistan by Australian Special Forces soldiers, was made public before its allegations were properly investigated.
These include claims – such as the murder of Afghan children – widely regarded as nonsense. None of the claims has been put to the evidentiary test of a court-martial, and all supposedly only apply to less than 20 personnel, yet the Defence hierarchy was quite prepared to strip decorations from thousands of soldiers, including some killed in battle. Worse, the premature release of the report has handed a bullying China “an unnecessary propaganda win”, in the words of government MP, ex-soldier Andrew Hastie.
Defence Minister Linda Reynold’s position is rapidly becoming untenable. Veterans, in particular, are furious at her comments accusing Australian soldiers of “cold-blooded murder”.
But, apparently she is supposed to be untouchable…because she’s female.
Senior women in the federal government are urging Scott Morrison to keep Defence Minister Linda Reynolds in her portfolio, amid a backlash over her handling of the Brereton war crimes report and a push to replace her with Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton.
Ahead of a reshuffle next week, female ministers are understood to have expressed support for Senator Reynolds during the first women’s-only cabinet dinner in the Prime Minister’s private dining room on Monday evening, held at the suggestion of Josh Frydenberg […]
Some of the women present are understood to have expressed the view that Senator Reynolds, who left briefly to attend a division in the chamber, was doing well in a difficult portfolio.
Perhaps they ought to talk to some soldiers.
Speaking to serving and ex-soldiers, the mood in the ADF community seems to run from despondent to white-hot fury.
One senior minister said Senator Reynolds’ position was untenable, as MPs faced an onslaught from furious veterans.
“Linda has sadly been an abject failure and the devastation of her handling of the Brereton report cannot be underestimated,” said the minister, speaking on condition of anonymity.
“Multiple MPs are speaking about the fact that their local RSLs have told them the Defence Minister would not be welcome to visit. We’ve lost votes because of this we won’t be able to get back.
“The discussions involving Dutton and the defence portfolio are less about elevating him to that role and more about ensuring that Linda no longer continues in that role, given the damage she’s done to the government.”
Another MP said that under Senator Reynolds, the defence portfolio — once a strong suit for the Coalition — had become problematic.
“National security and defence is a core equity but it’s now a liability,” the MP said.
Of course, Senator Reynolds is not alone in bollixing the report. “Scotty from Marketing” is a nickname not entirely unearned. The PM’s response to the report was all about “getting in front of the issue” by being seen to be doing something. Yet, as any marketing strategist will tell you, jumping in and saying the wrong thing in a crisis is disastrous: far better to have said nothing, at least until any court-martial process had been allowed to proceed.
But Senator Reynolds is the minister and has to wear primary responsibility. If she remains in the portfolio, the backlash will hurt the government badly. As things stand, next year’s ANZAC Day parades could be a massive embarrassment for the government.
Despite the case against Senator Reynolds, Mr Morrison is unlikely to dump her from cabinet.
“Scott doesn’t want to sack her because she’s female, from WA and it opens up a bigger move in the cabinet,” a senior source said.
The Australian
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