On the subject of ministerial responsibility, the latest government scandal (over illicit payments to Saddam Hussein by the Australian Wheat Board) is pretty interesting.

We won't go into the detail, but basically an ex-Government body has paid bribes to Saddam Hussein to make sure Australia got the main contract to supply Iraqi wheat, under the UN's now defunct 'oil for food' regime.

The question is who in the government knew, or if they didn't know, should have known about this, and obviously then done something about it. We've had a whole raft of government ministers denying they knew anything (of course) in spite of numerous warnings by the UN and various foreign governments - the Canadian, and even America (allies of Australia in the Iraq war).

It's clear that the Australian government knew about the bribes, or should have known - at the very least 'turning a blind eye' so as to be able to say they didn't know. The interesting question, in the vein of the previous musings about ministerial responsibility in the current Australian government, is whether any of the ministers concerned (Foreign Minister Alexander Downer or Trade Minister Mark Vaile) will accept responsibility and step down.

Going on past behaviour, you'd have to say the chances are pretty minimal...

-A