Katy Gallagher (ACT, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Finance) Share this | Hansard source

Labor will not support this motion that would prohibit nonlawyers from being appointed to the AAT. There are some nonlawyers who have the skills and experience to make them an excellent AAT member. However, there is no doubt that the Liberal government has grossly misused the AAT as a Liberal Party employment agency. The Abbott-Turnbull-Morrison government have appointed at least 57 Liberal friends to lucrative jobs on the AAT, where full-time senior members are paid over $380,000 a year and even junior members are paid at least $190,000 a year. The appointments include failed Liberal candidates, dumped Liberal MPs and long-time staffers straight out of the office of the Attorney-General, Mr Porter, who hands out these appointments. The misuse of the AAT as a dumping ground for unemployable Liberals must stop.