Canberra's mandarins have gone silent
A secrecy problem is creeping into the Albanese government, and nowhere is this more apparent than the Qatar Airways saga.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese came to office promising a new era of accountability and transparency.
While Labor has enacted a few high-profile measures such as the National Anti-Corruption Commission and greater protections for whistleblowers, recent evidence suggests that there is a transparency problem creeping into this government.
Take the case of the missing advice in the Qatar Airways saga.
Over the past day, Capital Brief has revealed that not a single piece of advice was handed to Transport Minister Catherine King from either her department or the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade in the 14 weeks leading up to her decision.
Two separate Freedom of Information requests came back to me this week with a government lawyer saying no such documents existed.
