Home Affairs boss stands aside for investigation of texts leak

The Public Service code of conduct requires bureaucrats to act in an apolitical and independent manner, and to be open and accountable in their work.

“Minister O’Neil has spoken with Mike Pezzullo, the secretary of the Department of Home Affairs, this morning, and has asked that he stand aside whilst this investigation takes place,” Mr Albanese said.

Ms O’Neil, at a press conference in Adelaide, said the communications in question were “extensive”.

Former senior public servant Andrew Podger said it appeared Mr Pezzullo had failed in the responsibilities of secretaries to uphold the APS code of conduct, including values of impartiality.

“That is what the investigation has to look at, but I think it is going to be hard to reconcile this material coming out and his obligations to promote and uphold the values, including of impartiality and non partisanship,” he said.

Former foreign minister Bob Carr told Sky Mr Pezzullo had no pathway back to his job.

“There can be no coming back, and, as a realist, he’d be the first to concede this surely, with his knowledge of politics and public administration.”

Mr Briggs is a lobbyist, businessman and the former vice president of the NSW Liberal Party.

He is a close confidante of former prime ministers Malcolm Turnbull and Scott Morrison and traded messages with Mr Pezzullo as far back as 2016, discussing ministerial appointments, political developments and government policy.

He stepped away from a firm bidding to be part of the Morrison government’s scuttled plans to outsource visa processing arrangement.

The encrypted messages were traded on WhatsApp and Signal.

Greens immigration and citizenship spokesman Nick McKim called Mr Pezzullo’s actions “deeply inappropriate” and called for him to resign or be sacked.

“His brazen attempts to manipulate the political process and his failure to respect the boundaries between politics and the public service mean that his position is untenable,” Senator McKim said.

Opposition Leader Peter Dutton, who worked closely with Mr Pezzullo during his time as home affairs minister, said the official had always acted professionally.

“He conducted himself in a thoroughly professional way in my dealings with him. That was my experience in dealing with Mr Pezzullo,” Mr Dutton said.

“If the prime minister doesn’t have confidence in Mr Pezzullo he should say so. This is an issue for the government to work out.”

The leaked messages include Mr Pezzullo calling Senator Payne “completely ineffectual” as defence minister, and saying Mr Pyne should be removed from the “silly” defence industry portfolio.

He said he “almost had a heart attack” when former foreign minister Julie Bishop was considering a tilt to become prime minister.

He called then Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet secretary Martin Parkinson “incompetent” and “insecure”.

During the 2018 leadership spill, sparked by Mr Dutton and which resulted in Mr Turnbull’s ouster, Mr Pezzullo told Mr Briggs a conservative replacement was needed.

“You need a right-winger in there – people smugglers will be watching … please feed that in [to Morrison and Turnbull],” Mr Pezzullo wrote.

Independent MP Sophie Scamps said Mr Pezzullo’s position was untenable.