Australia Post will pay its former chief executive Christine Holgate $1 million as a termination payment.

Ms Holgate left Australia Post after being spectacularly thrown under the bus over her award of Cartier watches as bonuses to executives in 2018.

At the time, Prime Minister Scott Morrison told Parliament he was “appalled” and the gifts were “disgraceful”.

“We are the shareholders of Australia Post on behalf of the Australian people,” he said.

“The chief executive ... has been instructed to stand aside, if she doesn't wish to do that, she can go.”

The Morrison Government had no other problem with the $97 million in bonuses handed out to Australia Post workers in the year before the damning estimates hearing, despite the fact that those in senior positions got the majority of the cash.

A government investigation into the matter was launched, with findings pledged to be made public with “appropriate redactions” when it was complete.

However, after cabinet saw the report that resulted, it decided to keep the documents secret.

The investigation found that Ms Holgate “had not breached any rule, policy, procedure or governance requirement or committed any impropriety”. 

The government got around to releasing the report a month after it said it would, on a Friday afternoon.

After mediation before a former Federal Court judge, Australia Post now says it “acknowledges that it has lost an effective CEO following the events on the morning of 22 October 2020”.

“Australia Post regrets the difficult circumstances surrounding Ms Holgate's departure from her role as CEO.”

The federal government-owned company will also pay $100,000 towards Ms Holgate's legal costs, but the deal allows it to make no admission of liability and requires Ms Holgate release Australia Post from all legal claims.