The Office of the Official Secretary to the Governor-General has released a statement addressing the reports former prime minister Scott Morrison secretly swore himself into three ministerial positions while in government.
'The Governor-General, following normal process and acting on the advice of the government of the day, appointed former Prime Minister Morrison to administer portfolios other than the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet,' the statement read.
'The appointments were made consistently with section 64 of the Constitution.
'It is not uncommon for Ministers to be appointed to administer departments other than their portfolio responsibility. These appointments do not require a swearing-in ceremony � the Governor-General signs an administrative instrument on the advice of the Prime Minister.
'Questions around appointments of this nature are a matter for the government of the day and the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. Similarly, the decision whether to publicise appointments to administer additional portfolios is a matter for the government of the day.'
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has slammed Mr Morrison's decision to take on extra portfolios while in office, labelling the move a 'centralisation of power'.
