Keep politics separate from the justice system

July 9, 2026 — 5:00pm

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The messy saga involving a parliamentary committee’s interrogation of Director of Public Prosecutions Sally Dowling, SC, came to a head this week, when the committee’s final report accused Dowling of giving false evidence to parliament.

It was a gravely serious finding, made by a 4-3 majority of the inquiry, and it was swiftly dismissed by Attorney-General Michael Daley, who described the inquiry as a “stitch-up”.

Three MPs delivered strongly worded dissents. Such disagreement is not uncommon in committees, which are often political and divided along party lines. Two Coalition MPs, one Labor MP and a Shooters, Fishers and Farmers Party MP accused Dowling of misleading parliament, while two Labor and one Greens MP disagreed.

This split was unusual, though, in that Labor’s Stephen Lawrence, a Sydney barrister, lined up alongside the Coalition........

© The Sydney Morning Herald