THE Chief Minister’s office has quietly appointed former Labor cabinet minister Gordon Ramsay to an advisory role to Mr Barr barely four months on from the 2020 ACT Election. 

A spokeswoman to Mr Barr confirmed the unannounced appointment this afternoon (February 17), saying that Mr Ramsay has been engaged on a temporary contract as a staff member in the Chief Minister’s office to undertake work on possible reforms to the human rights compatibility assessment process and the “Anti-Discrimination Act”.

Ramsay, a former lawyer and minister of religion, was elected to the Ginninderra electorate in 2016, subsequently taking on senior ministerial roles for the ACT Labor/Greens government including Attorney-General, Arts Minister, Building Quality Improvement Minister, Business Minister and Veterans and Seniors Minister.

He failed at October’s election to hold his seat, losing the electorate’s fifth seat to Liberal candidate Peter Cain.

Now, less than four months since the election, Mr Ramsay has turned up in a role as a staff member in the Chief Minister’s office.

The spokeswoman assured that the employment of Mr Ramsay is consistent with the “Legislative Assembly Members Staff Act” and the relevant Enterprise Bargaining Agreements.

She would not disclose his salary due to it being “personal staff information” but believes he was the right person for the job, saying: “Mr Ramsay brings a wealth of experience and knowledge to this task, as well as strong relationships with a wide range of affected stakeholders.”

She emphasised that he is a temporary staff member, not a public servant.