Scott Morrison could yet face further punishment for his secret portfolios after becoming the first former prime minister to be censured in Parliament.
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Greens leader Adam Bandt is considering a second attempt at referring Mr Morrison for investigation by Parliament's powerful privileges committee.
Speaker Milton Dick rejected the Greens' first request in September because he wasn't satisfied there was enough evidence to support allegations Mr Morrison had misled Parliament.
But the Greens believe there is now a more compelling case following the findings of High Court Justice Virginia Bell's report into the secret ministries scandal, which found the appointments were "unnecessary" and the decision to keep them secret "corrosive of trust in government".
Mr Morrison was on Wednesday hit with an unprecedented parliamentary rebuke after a motion to censure him passed the lower house 86 votes to 50.
The now backbencher went down swinging, using his first speech in Parliament since the federal election loss to defend his record and accuse the Albanese government of "political intimidation".
"My government stood up and faced the abyss of uncertainty that our country looked into and the coercion of a regional bully and saw Australia through the storm," he said in a 24-minute speech.
"Australia emerged stronger under my government.
"I have no intention now of submitting to the political intimidation of this government, using its numbers in this place to impose its retribution on a political opponent."
Mr Morrison did not express regret for the decisions, but in hindsight accepts that the secret appointments were unnecessary.
![Former prime minister Scott Morrison stared down the censure motion. Picture Elesa Kurtz Former prime minister Scott Morrison stared down the censure motion. Picture Elesa Kurtz](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/znhWFHRUTrpRC32tGqnZkk/12f72bf6-9df8-4a2e-b8d4-c94afe264957.jpg/r0_277_5424_3339_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
Liberal and National MPs rallied behind their besieged colleague after his speech, lining up to shake his hand before walking out of the chamber en masse.
The Coalition opposed the censure, rubbishing it as a political hit job.
A notable exception was Liberal MP Bridget Archer, who crossed the floor to support the rebuke of her former boss.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the fact the censure was necessary was a "profoundly sad moment" in the history of the Federal Parliament.
He called on Mr Morrison to apologise to the Australian public.
"This was an abuse of power and an utter trashing of our democracy," he said.
The government's censure motion said the constitution provided for "responsible government" - described by the High Court as a "system by which the executive is responsible to the legislature and, through it, to the electorate".
Mr Morrison undermined responsible government by failing to disclose his ministries to the public, Parliament and cabinet, the motion said.
"[The] entire concept of responsible government only works if the Parliament, and through the Parliament, the Australian people know which members of the executive are responsible for what," Tony Burke, who moved the motion, told the Parliament.
Mr Morrison said in prosecuting the case against him, Labor was engaging in the "politics of retribution and nothing less".
"These are the behaviours of an opposition, Mr Speaker, not a government who understands that grace in victory is a virtue," he said.
![Liberals and Nationals lined up to shake hands with Mr Morrison after the speech. Picture by Elesa Kurtz Liberals and Nationals lined up to shake hands with Mr Morrison after the speech. Picture by Elesa Kurtz](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/znhWFHRUTrpRC32tGqnZkk/0e17885e-63ab-4144-9a64-a0c5666dd311.jpg/r0_78_5043_2924_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
Liberal frontbencher Paul Fletcher described the motion as a "exercise in political payback" as he confirmed the Coalition would oppose it.
Shadow Attorney-General Julian Leeser argued that after losing the election and facing criticism from the solicitor general and Justice Bell for the portfolios scandal, Mr Morrison had already "had enough censures".
The Bell inquiry was ordered after revelations Mr Morrison had secretly appointed himself to administer the health, finance, treasury, home affairs and resources portfolios during the pandemic.
Justice Bell's 159-page report also revealed the former prime minister had planned to appoint himself to the environment and water portfolio - but chose not to go ahead with it.
The last MP to be censured was Liberal MP Bruce Billson in 2018 for not declaring payments while he was still in Parliament.
Mr Burke said the case for Parliament to censure Mr Morrison was stronger than it had been for Mr Billson.
Former Coalition prime minister Tony Abbott, attending parliament to unveil his prime ministerial portrait, declined to comment when asked about the censure motion on Wednesday.
"Prime ministers form the country's most exclusive club, and while there are invariably between them storms past and storms future, there should always be bonds of mutual respect," he said.
Mr Abbott has previously described Mr Morrison's decision to appoint himself to multiple ministries in secret as "unusual, unorthodox and strange", but said he was "reluctant" to condemn the conduct.