Attacks on the prime minister’s department continue over its refusal to release national cabinet documents. 

Independent senator Rex Patrick has labelled the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet’s secretary, Phil Gaetjens, a “disgrace” and a “henchman” for Prime Minister Scott Morrison.

In August, Senator Patrick successfully argued in the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) that the Prime Minister did not have the grounds to extend cabinet confidentiality to his national cabinet meetings with state premiers and chief ministers.

Senator Patrick wants to know the details that have led to various decisions since the cabinet was formed to replace COAG meetings. 

He is also seeking answers on how much the department is spending defending “untenable” FOI decisions.

The AAT decision should have paved the way for documents to be accessed under Freedom of Information laws, but the stonewalling continues. 

This week, Senator Patrick labelled Mr Gaetjens a “cover-up expert”, alleging improper use of the same cabinet documents exemption covered by the AAT decision.

He also named two other officials from the PM’s department - Angie McKenzie and Hugh Cameron - that he says knocked back his freedom of information requests for national cabinet documents on the basis of the disputed exemption.

He said the bureaucrats are ignoring justice Richard White’s decision in the AAT, as they continue to insist that national cabinet is a subcommittee of the federal cabinet,

Senator Patrick read from Ms McKenzie’s decision, which explained that she determined national cabinet to be a subcommittee on the basis of evidence the AAT may not have seen in the prior case.

Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet secretary of governance, Stephanie Foster, said the judge in the AAT case was “making decisions on a particular case, on the basis of the facts in front of him in that case”.

The department’s first assistant secretary of the government division, John Reid, said the legal decision “has no precedential force beyond the facts before it”.

“The department is absolutely not ignoring the decision of Justice White,” he said. 

“The decision of Justice White has been drawn to the attention of all decision-makers.”

But even so, he said “the government’s position remains that national cabinet was established … a committee of the federal cabinet”. 

One Nation’s Malcolm Roberts said national cabinet documents are not cabinet-in-confidence because national cabinet is a “fabrication” and “a pretend concept”.

“The name sounds grand, yet it’s nothing more than a meeting of the prime minister and state and territory premiers and chief ministers,” Senator Roberts said in November.

Opposition leader Anthony Albanese says the prime minister’s department is “not above the law”.

Mr Gaetjens and the Australian public service commissioner, Peter Woolcott, have written to the Senate president complaining that Senator Patrick was making “derogatory comments” about public servants.

They said Patrick “misused” parliamentary privilege to accuse the department of politicised decisions which “could be characterised as bullying and harassment”.

“McKenzie is a highly regarded and competent, professional public servant and conducts herself with the highest standards of integrity,” they said.

“As Ms McKenzie’s employer, we strongly object to Senator Patrick’s unwarranted and offensive remarks and ask that Senator Patrick be directed to withdraw these comments.”

Senator Patrick responded this week, saying; “Some might think it is unconventional that I come into the chamber and start naming public officials - but there are conventions being broken inside of government that are far more harmful.”

He said Mr Gaetjens “hasn’t lead the public service in a highly professional way” and “has been happy to act as the Prime Minister’s henchman, covering up all manner of sins and corruption in the government”.

He labelled Mr Gaetjens a “cover-up expert … helping the PM in sending all manner of dirty secrets and sins off to the governance committee of cabinet to be buried for the next 20 years in the vaults of the national archives”.

The prime minister’s department issued a statement saying: “PM&C wholly rejects Senator Patrick’s latest allegations. These continued personal attacks on APS staff remain unwarranted and untrue.”