Shaw demanded judicial appointment: A-G

Victoria's attorney-general says the MP who holds the balance of power in Victoria's parliament demanded he make a judicial appointment.

Victoria's balance-of-power MP demanded the government appoint a judge of his choosing, the state attorney-general says.

Premier Denis Napthine has previously said independent Frankston MP Geoff Shaw had a discussion with him about "a particular judicial appointment" but it was rejected out of hand.

Mr Shaw has denied the claim.

Labor has asked the Independent Broad-based Anti-Corruption Commission (IBAC) to investigate the alleged request and the fact it was not referred to the state anti-corruption body.

Attorney-General Robert Clark said on Thursday that Mr Shaw had provided him with "one or two" names and he felt Mr Shaw was making a demand of him.

"He was simply indicating in his conversation with me that he was expecting and insisting that a particular appointment was made and that was completely unacceptable and was rejected," Mr Clark told reporters.

"Mr Shaw has from time to time raised suggestions regarding a potential judicial appointment. In itself there's nothing untoward in that. It becomes unacceptable if that's accompanied by a demand."

Dr Napthine said he had received a letter from IBAC asking for more information on the matter, but said it indicated there was no justification for the issues raised against him.

"The allegations were made against myself and he said there's no justification," Dr Napthine said of the letter from IBAC commissioner Stephen O'Bryan.

Opposition Leader Daniel Andrews said judicial appointments were a serious matter and if demands had been made of Mr Clark, he should have spoken up about them.

"He's the first law officer of the state, for heaven's sake. Why has it taken him until now to be halfway truthful about this?" Mr Andrews said.

He said Mr Clark and Dr Napthine needed to be reveal the nature of the demands and when they were made.


Share

2 min read

Published

Updated


Share this with family and friends


Get SBS News daily and direct to your Inbox

Sign up now for the latest news from Australia and around the world direct to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

Download our apps
SBS News
SBS Audio
SBS On Demand

Listen to our podcasts
An overview of the day's top stories from SBS News
Interviews and feature reports from SBS News
Your daily ten minute finance and business news wrap with SBS Finance Editor Ricardo Gonçalves.
A daily five minute news wrap for English learners and people with disability
Get the latest with our News podcasts on your favourite podcast apps.

Watch on SBS
SBS World News

SBS World News

Take a global view with Australia's most comprehensive world news service
Watch the latest news videos from Australia and across the world