Scott Morrison: Former Australian prime minister to quit politics

Australia’s former Prime Minister Scott Morrison has announced he will quit parliament to join the private sector.

Mr Morrison, a conservative who was first elected in 2007, was the country’s leader from 2018 to 2022.

He oversaw Australia’s pandemic response, the Aukus defence pact, and was embroiled in a historic scandal for secretly appointing himself to several ministerial positions while PM.

“The time has come for me to return to private life,” he said on Tuesday.

Mr Morrison said he would now take on a series of advisory roles related to defence.

“After having served in the parliament for more than sixteen years, including almost four as Prime Minister during a very challenging time for our country, now is the time to move on,” he said in a statement.

Mr Morrison’s retirement has long been expected following a shattering election loss to Labor’s Anthony Albanese in 2022, during which his party lost 18 seats.

The 55-year-old first garnered national attention in 2013 when he was appointed to cabinet as immigration minister and oversaw Operation Sovereign Borders – which hardened Australia’s controversial asylum seeker policies.

He then served as social services minister and treasurer, before succeeding Malcolm Turnbull as Liberal Party leader and prime minister. Mr Morrison famously defied polls to win the 2019 federal election.

After a decade of political leadership challenges in both major parties which upended governments, he became the first prime minister to serve a full term since John Howard in 2007.