Pezzullo was stood down in September after following reports of leaked text messages to Liberal powerbroker Scott Briggs.

He suggested some ministers be sacked and which MP should oversee his department and the texts showed he wanted Peter Dutton, now the federal opposition leader, to become Home Affairs Minister.

An independent inquiry by Australian Public Service Commissioner Lynelle Briggs found Pezzuloo had breached the code of conduct on at least 14 occasions in relation to five overarching allegations.

The allegations included that he used his duty, power, status or authority to seek to benefit or advantage himself, engaged in gossip and disrespectful critique of ministers, failed to maintain the confidentiality of sensitive government information, failed to act apolitically and failed to disclose a conflict of interest.

In a statement this morning, Albanese said Pezzullo’s appointment had been “terminated”.

“This action was based on a recommendation to me by the Secretary of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet and the Australian Public Service Commissioner, following an independent inquiry by Lynelle Briggs,” the Prime Minister said.

“That inquiry found breaches of the Australian Public Service Code of Conduct by Mr Pezzullo.”

The Community and Public Sector Union welcomed the decision.

CPSU national secretary Melissa Donnelly said Pezzullo’s position was untenable with his reported conduct going against impartiality principles.

“The termination of Michael Pezzullo as secretary of the Department of Home Affairs is an appropriate and necessary step,” she said, adding that the public service code of conduct needed to apply at all levels of employment, from graduates to middle management and department heads.

“Far too often we have seen everyday public servants being held to a higher standard than their bosses,” she said.

Veteran bureaucrat Stephanie Foster will continue to act as secretary until a new head is found.

– with AAP