Updated
ABC chairman Justin Milne has resigned amid a
"firestorm" that included accusations he interfered in the broadcaster's
editorial independence.
Key points:
- Mr Milne had been accused in several reports this week of failing to safeguard the ABC's editorial independence
- He refutes this, and said the Government never "told me what to do in relation to the ABC"
- However, he also said: "You can't go around irritating the person who's going to give you funding …"
After meeting today the ABC Board released a statement saying it was "grateful for [Mr Milne's] willingness to put the ABC first in coming to his decision to resign".
In an exclusive interview with 7.30's Leigh Sales, Mr Milne described the week's events as a "firestorm" and said he "wanted to provide a release valve".
"Clearly there is a lot of pressure on the organisation, and as always, my interests have been to look after the interests of the corporation," he said.
"It's clearly not a good thing for everybody to be trying to do their job with this kind of firestorm going on."Mr Milne had been under enormous pressure to stand down.
In the days after Michelle Guthrie's acrimonious departure as managing director, explosive reports claimed Mr Milne had earlier urged the then managing director to sack two prominent reporters because the Government "hated" them.
Fairfax Media claimed Mr Milne emailed Ms Guthrie in May to insist senior journalist Emma Alberici be fired.
Another report in News Limited publications claimed Mr Milne had ordered the sacking of the ABC's political editor, Andrew Probyn.
Mr Milne told Sales his resignation was not an admission that he had failed to protect the ABC's independence.
"Absolutely 100 per cent not. In fact I feel that the interests of the ABC have always been uppermost in my mind," he said.
"There was absolutely no interference in the independence of the ABC by the Government.
"Nobody from the Government has ever rung me and told me what to do in relation to the ABC."
Communications Minister Mitch Fifield said Mr Milne's resignation was the "right decision" and that the Government would appoint an acting chairman and begin the search for a long-term replacement for Mr Milne.
"The ABC Act lays down an independent nomination panel process to be followed for appointing the chair of the ABC," he said in a statement.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison has welcomed Mr Milne's resignation.
"ABC Board and Chairman have made the right call," he tweeted.
"Time for the ABC to resume normal transmission, both independently and without bias. That is what Australia's taxpayers pay for and deserve."
Calls for Senate inquiry
Shadow Communications Minister Michelle Rowland said a Senate inquiry should look into what the Government knew about Ms Guthrie's sacking."When did they find out and what did they know? These are some of the questions that need to be answered, and again, it is for this reason that Labor is calling for an independent, transparent Senate inquiry into political interference at the ABC.
"The public's trust and confidence in the ABC has taken a battering."
Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young agreed that urgent action was needed to protect the integrity of the national broadcaster.
She has backed calls for an independent probe and called for the entire ABC board to stand down.
"We need to clean out the board, put a broom through it and ensure that the staff and journalists are not just able to get on with their jobs, but they are protected and supported in doing that," she said.
Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance (MEAA) chief executive Paul Murphy said Mr Fifield, Mr Morrison and former prime minister Malcolm Turnbull should all be questioned in a Senate inquiry.
"A departmental inquiry is simply not good enough and the public cannot have faith it will be anything but a whitewash," he said.
Earlier today, the ABC board met without Mr Milne.
When asked whether he sent an email to Ms Guthrie instructing her to "get rid" of Alberici — the ABC's chief economics correspondent — Mr Milne said it needed to be explained "in context".
"When there is an issue of editorial independence and accuracy it's appropriate for the chair to be involved — it's the chair's job," he said.
"[But] I have never sent an email to Michelle Guthrie or anybody else, which says you must sack Emma Alberici or Andrew Probyn or anybody else."
He described what was reported as "a piece of an email" but later also said: "You can't go around irritating the person who's going to give you funding again and again if it's over matters about accuracy and impartiality."
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- Emma Alberici responds to claims ABC chairman Justin Milne wanted Michelle Guthrie to sack her
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- Michelle Guthrie's challenging years as the head of the ABC
- Michelle Guthrie sacked from ABC managing director role halfway through term
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