Senate inquiry recommends Scott Morrison apologise to former Australia Post CEO Christine Holgate
A Senate inquiry into the resignation of former Australia Post CEO Christine Holgate has recommended Prime Minister Scott Morrison apologise to her.
The inquiry today released a list of 25 recommendations following the ousting of Ms Holgate, including calling for the resignation of Australia Post chair Lucio Di Bartolomeo.
Other recommendations included a restructuring of the Australia Post board and an express ruling out of plans to privatise the service.
“The committee recommends that the Australia Post Board and Shareholder Ministers and the Prime Minister apologise to Ms Holgate for denying her the legal principles of procedural fairness and natural justice in her departure from Australia Post,” recommendation five in the report reads.
The recommendations come on the heels of explosive testimonies to the inquiry in which Ms Holgate claimed she was bullied out of her job.
“I lost my job, a job that I loved, because I was humiliated by our prime minister for committing no offence and then bullied by my chairman,” she told the committee.
“The simple truth is I was bullied out of my job. I was humiliated and driven to despair.
“I was thrown under the bus of the chairman of Australia Post, to curry favour with his political masters.”
Ms Holgate left her position after political fallout following revelations she spent $20,000 on rewarding four executives with Cartier watches.
She said she has never spoken to Mr Morrison and believed she was treated differently when he called for her sacking in parliament.
On October 22 last year, Mr Morrison vehemently called for Ms Holgate to stand aside.
“We are the shareholders of Australia Post on behalf of the Australian people… she has been instructed to stand aside, if she doesn’t wish to do that, she can go,” he said during Question Time.
List of recommendations to be made following Christine Holgate fallout
The Senate inquiry provided a list of 25 recommendations following the potentially unlawful ousting of former CEO Christine Holgate.
Among them were:
- That the Australia Post Board, Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Shareholder Ministers apologise to Ms Holgate
- That Australia Post retrain senior staff on Senate procedures
- That the Minister for Communications Paul Fletcher be investigated over an instruction made to the board to stand Ms Holgate aside
- That the Australian Post board be restructured to include nominees of different backgrounds
- That Australia Post Chair Lucio Di Bartolomeo resign
- That Australian Government expressly rule out privatising or divesting of Australia
