More than half of Australians support an independent inquiry into whether Christian Porter is a fit and proper person to be Attorney General, according to new research from the Australia Institute.

The Australia Institute surveyed a nationally representative sample of 1,000 Australians between 11 to 12 March 2021, about whether they support an independent inquiry into Christian Porter’s fitness for office, as well as the Morrison government’s recent performance regarding allegations of sexual violence against women.

Key findings:

·       More than half (54%) of Australians support an independent inquiry into whether Christian Porter is a fit and proper person to be Attorney General, 20% oppose such an inquiry (25% don’t know).

·       Two in five (39%) Australians rate the recent performance of Scott Morrison’s Government in its handling of allegations of sexual violence against women as below average/extremely poor; compared to a quarter (26%) who rated its performance as above average/excellent, a quarter (26%) said it is average.

·       35% of Australians rate the performance of Scott Morrison’s Government in its handling of issues that primarily impact women as below average/extremely poor, compared to 27% who rated it above average/excellent.

“Along with many legal experts, more than half the Australian public supports in an independent inquiry to determine whether Christian Porter is fit to be Attorney General,” said Ebony Bennett, deputy director of the Australia Institute.

“The Attorney General is the first law officer of Australia and must be above reproach. Establishing an independent inquiry is one way the Prime Minister could uphold and perhaps restore the public’s trust in that office.”

“The Women’s March 4 Justice shows that Australians, particularly women, are fed up with men’s violence against women as well as the treatment of victim-survivors who come forward.”

“Past Australia Institute research shows that nine in ten Australian women have experienced at least one form of verbal or physical street harassment; half reported they had been followed and a quarter had been threatened after rejecting the sexual advances of a stranger.”

“Many more Australians think the Morrison government has done an extremely poor job of handling these issues than think it has done well, but it is clear the Prime Minister has an opportunity here to lead the nation and create transformational change that addresses the behaviour of male perpetrators, not their victims,” said Bennett.