Oh, you thought Malcolm Turnbull would just quietly jet off to New York after losing the Prime Ministership, leaving Scott Morrison to try to hold the government together in peace? Lol nah.

The former PM has confirmed that he’s been lobbying Morrison and other Liberal MPs to refer his nemesis, Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton to the High Court over questions about his eligibility to sit in Parliament.

Fairfax last night published a story saying that Turnbull was “plotting” against Dutton from New York, where he and his wife, Lucy, have been holidaying since last week.

“Mr Turnbull has been arguing that it’s intolerable for a cloud of doubt to hang over the head of the Home Affairs Minister,” the story claimed.

Shortly after the story was published, Turnbull tweeted to confirm that he has personally lobbied the PM to refer Dutton to the High Court.

The point I have made to @ScottMorrisonMP and other colleagues is that given the uncertainty around Peter Dutton’s eligibility, acknowledged by the Solicitor General, he should be referred to the High Court, as Barnaby was, to clarify the matter.

— Malcolm Turnbull (@TurnbullMalcolm) September 12, 2018

What’s This About The High Court?

The questions about Dutton’s eligibility have been kicking around for months, but really came to the fore during last month’s leadership clusterfuck, when Turnbull used them to delay a vote for the leadership, buying Morrison valuable time to lobby MPs to his side.

Dutton’s eligibility is under a cloud thanks to our old friend, Section 44 of the Constitution. But it’s not a citizenship question haunting Dutton, instead, there are questions about whether Dutton receives a benefit from the Commonwealth while sitting as an MP, which would be in breach of the Constitution.

Dutton and his wife own a few childcare centres, which, since a change in the law last year, receive funds directly from the Commonwealth. During the leadership saga last month, Turnbull sought advice from the Solicitor General on Dutton’s eligibility to sit in Parliament.

That advice was returned on the morning of the second spill, and was half-hearted at best. It found that Dutton was “not incapable” of sitting in Parliament, but there was still a “some risk” that the High Court might find against him.

Constitutional scholar Anne Twomey, who is considered Australia’s foremost expert on these matters, reckons Dutton would be in a spot of bother if his case was referred to the High Court.

Which Brings Us To…

This is actually quite a big deal. As Home Affairs minister, Dutton has the power to personally intervene in important matters. If he was found to be ineligible to sit in Parliament, it would cast a cloud over several of the big decisions he’s made as a minister.

This was the logic Turnbull used when he tried to undermine Dutton’s bid for the leadership, and it almost worked. During the leadership crisis, an attempt in the House of Representatives to force Dutton to the High Court failed by a single vote.

And now, from his penthouse apartment in New York, Turnbull is personally lobbying his former colleagues to cross the floor and vote against Dutton.

Will it work? Probably not. Most Liberal MPs seem committed to trying to hold the government together. But it will certainly cause some chaos for the government, which no longer has a majority now that Turnbull has quit parliament.

With all of this, plus the ongoing au pair scandal, plus the fact that he massively fucked up his leadership challenge, it’s a pretty rough time for Peter Dutton right now.