The Northern Territory government says it has already spent more than $57,000 on the legal fees for John Elferink, the former attorney general, in his dealings with the NT royal commission.
The revelations surfaced on the first day of the royal commission’s first public hearing in Darwin’s supreme court.
The commission is examining the protection and detention of children in the NT, and was called by the prime minister in response to a Four Corners episode that detailed mistreatment and abuse of detainees inside juvenile facilities.
A number of the incidents highlighted occurred under the previous Country Liberal party government, including the teargassing of six detainees during an incident in August 2014.
Elferink, who was also the minister for corrections, justice and children under the previous CLP government, is expected to appear before the commission and has retained special counsel, Andrew Harris.
According to a NT government spokesman the previous CLP government had agreed to cover all of Elferink’s legal fees, but the new Labor government will no longer provide a “blank cheque”, according to the attorney general, Natasha Fyles.
The government has since set a cap of $30,000 on private legal fee assistance packages for government members appearing before the royal commission. There is an initial upfront payment, and then as the commission progresses they can apply to the solicitor general for more.
When asked if Elferink had applied but been knocked back, as suggested by Harris during the commission, Fyles said: “$57,000 is a significant amount of legal representation that has been paid for Mr Elferink considering today is the first day of hearings and Mr Elferink has not yet been called as a witness.”
She said there had been no evidence provided to justify further claim.
There are also other legal assistance mechanisms, Fyles said, including applying at the end of the commission for reimbursement.
The revelation came in response to claims by Harris, who is representing Elferink, that the NT government had rescinded its financial support.
Had he known that would happen, Harris said, he wouldn’t have applied for leave to appear for every day of the commission because Elferink doesn’t have the “financial wherewithal” to fund it himself for that length.
Harris told the commission the rules were changed after he was granted leave to appear and that they had sought further funding from the NT government but it was not forthcoming.
Harris said at the time of last month’s directions hearing he was of the understanding that he was retained at the cost of the NT government, with “no qualification or limitation on that retainer being limited to some narrow aspect of the royal commission’s terms of reference”.
Guardian Australia understands current and former government members were informed of the cap in September.
Harris said the ABC Four Corners program was “dishonest and unprofessional” in its treatment of Elferink and these latest developments will compromise the protection of Elferink’s interests.
The commission continues.
