The Federal Opposition has homed in on findings last week by the Auditor-General that the Coalition Government has misused millions of dollars in a program to build car parks near train stations to encourage greater use of public transport. Like the sports rorts affair which brought down Minister Bridget McKenzie last year, the government is accused of disproportionately lavishing funds on projects in Coalition electorates.
That’s called pork-barrelling. Or in this case, car pork rorts.
Ministers in elected governments have always had a discretion about how money is spent to assist community endeavours. That is, in part, their job. So what’s wrong about the way the Morrison Government has spent money here?
Kristina Keneally, Labor’s government accountability spokesperson, says the issue is one of fairness. It’s unfair that worthier projects in Labor-held electorates have been bypassed in favour of less worthy projects in Coalition-held electorates.
Senator Keneally has a point. Merit should always be the touchstone of government decision-making. Merit has not been applied in decision-making here.
But Senator Keneally needs to be careful. Enrobing herself as the champion of merit poses the risk that she may trip on the hem.
Consider the case of the Biloela family, much in the media these days. They are the Sri Lankan family who has been fighting for years to stay in Australia, and who have recently been detained on Christmas Island.
Senator Keneally says the family should be able to stay. They have been through enough, and deserve our compassion, she says.
The minister, on the other hand, says that the rules do not allow them to stay. He says, as a matter of fairness, that their application must be rejected.
The minister has a point. The Biloela family are not refugees. Their claim to be refugees has been considered by several Australian tribunals and courts – including the High Court – and has been repeatedly rejected. The argument for them staying in Australia is that their quality of life here will be better than it would be in Sri Lanka.
But millions of other displaced people, quite literally, would make the same claim. To elevate the Biloela family’s claims for our compassion above those who obey the rules governing who gets to resettle in Australia is simply, well, unfair. Worthier applicants being bypassed by less worthy ones, you might say.
Some could contend, in Senator Keneally’s defence, that compromising your principles in a small way doesn’t really matter at the end of the day. Perhaps. But I think George Bernard Shaw should have the last word whether you can compromise your principles and still retain your integrity:
Shaw: Madam, would you sleep with me for a million pounds?
Actress: My goodness. Well, I’d certainly think about it.
Shaw: Would you sleep with me for a pound?
Actress: Certainly not! What kind of woman do you think I am?!
Shaw: Madam, we’ve already established that. Now we are haggling about the price.
Editor’s note: The opinions expressed in this column are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Canberra Daily.
