Grace Tame delivers snide dig amid ScoMo’s cabinet drama

Amid the news that Scott Morrison reportedly gave himself powers to run three government portfolios, activist Grace Tame has joined in with a scathing hot-take of her own.

“You see now, we had to stop him from swearing himself in as Australian of the Year 2022,” the 27-year-old tweeted, sharing the infamous photo of herself with the former Prime Minister when she met him at the Lodge at the start of the year.

Many were quick to praise Tame and jump in on the fun, joking that Mr Morrison made himself the ‘minister for side-eyeing’ and the minister for women.

“You had him figured from the start Grace,” New England MP Tony Windsor commented.

“Who didn’t know that he was a risky choice from day one? He is a friend of Harvey Norman for God’s sake,” another wrote.

Tame’s jab comes after the current Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese, announced that the government would investigate claims that Mr Morrison secretly appointed himself as the minister for health, finance, and resources during the pandemic.

Mr Albanese said the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet is seeking legal advice from the solicitor-general in the wake of the claims, published by The Australian and news.com.au’s coverage of Plagued, a new book from political journalists Simon Bensen and Geoff Chambers.

Governor-General David Hurley confirmed that he secretly signed instruments to allow Mr Morrison to administer the portfolios, “consistent with section 64 of the constitution”.

Mr Hurley said it wasn’t uncommon for ministers to be appointed to other departments, but that the decision to publicise it “is a matter for the government of the day”.

The ABC reported that then-Health Minister Greg Hunt was aware of Mr Morrison’s joint position and agreed to it as a safeguard in case he was struck down by COVID-19, but that Matthias Cormann, the former Finance Minister, wasn’t told the Prime Minister had appointed himself as joint finance minister.

Keith Pitt, the former Resources Minister, told the ABC that Mr Morrison used his self-appointment to the resources portfolio to stop a controversial gas drilling project on the NSW south coast.

Mr Albanese said the revelations were “extraordinary” and “just weird”.

“The people of Australia were kept in the dark as to what the ministerial arrangements were, it’s completely unacceptable,” he said on Monday.

“This is very contrary to our Westminster system. It was cynical and it was just weird that this has occurred.”

Mr Albanese said the allegations were serious, and that they might explain the controversial rollout of COVID-19 vaccines at the height of the pandemic.

“Perhaps this explains why we didn’t order enough vaccines. I mean, the Minister for Health might have thought the Prime Minister was ordering them because he was also the Minister for Health, and he thought the Minister for Health was ordering them,” Mr Albanese said.

According to Sky News, Mr Morrison has declined to comment on the accusations, claiming he hasn’t “engaged in any day to day politics” since his election loss in May.

“No, haven’t seen what [Mr Albanese] has said,” Mr Morrison told Sky News reporter Kieran Gilbert.

“Since leaving the job I haven’t engaged in any day to day politics.”

Meanwhile, AAP New Zealand correspondent Ben McKay confirmed that New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern hasn’t engaged in similar behaviour.

“Thought best to double check. New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern says she has never secretly sworn herself into other ministeries,” he tweeted.

Image: Twitter