THE CAUSE: Reliance on political donations
Individuals and corporations making large or regular political donations are rarely giving money for philanthropic reasons - they usually want something in return.
Sometimes it is access to a prime minister or premier, sometimes access to a particular minister and sometimes it is a barely concealed bribe in order that the donor gets a specific outcome from a particular government.
The
Liberal party received $4.1m from a single donor before the 2019
election, one of the largest amounts in political history, dwarfing
former leader Malcolm Turnbull’s $1.75m gift before the 2016
election.
The
donations, revealed in Australian Electoral Commission disclosures
published on Monday, are second only to the $83.3m donated by
Mineralogy Pty Ltd to Clive Palmer’s United Australia Party.
Both
major parties also took significant sums of money from the fossil
fuel industry, including multinational giant Woodside, something
environmentalists say explains government inaction in the “face of
a rolling national emergency driven by climate change”.
The
$4.1m donated to the federal Liberal party and its state branches was
given in multiple instalments by Sugolena Pty Ltd, a company linked
to philanthropist Isaac Wakil, who made his fortune in the clothing
industry and invested heavily in property, with his wife Susan,
around the Sydney suburb of Pyrmont…..
The
Liberals declared $22.6m in donations Labor $18.2m. Total receipts,
which include all donations regardless of the $13,800 reporting
threshold, other payments, returns from financial investments and
loans, amounted to $165m for the Liberals and $126m for Labor.
Australia’s
weak donation disclosure system continues to mask a huge chunk of
political financing.
Analysis by the Centre for Public Integrity
shows that $1bn in party income has not been disclosed between 1999
and the last reporting year, almost 36% of total party financing.
But
the disclosures that have been made continue to show the significant
influence of the fossil fuel industry in Australian democracy. Clive
Palmer’s Mineralogy, which gave $83,681,442 to Palmer’s United
Australia Party, was by far the single biggest fossil fuel donor.
An
analysis by the Australian Conservation Foundation found a further
$1.89m in fossil fuel donations to Australian political parties.
“This
data explains why even in the face of a rolling national emergency
driven by climate change and community demands for change, the
government continues to defend and promote the industries that are
the root cause of the problem,” ACF’s economy and democracy
program manager Matt Rose said.
“Serious
donations reform is needed now to make sure our political system
works for the benefit of all Australian, not just those with the
biggest wallets.”
The
biggest fossil fuel donor to the major parties was Woodside,
Australia’s biggest LNG exporter. It gave $135,400 to Labor,
$136,750 to the Liberal Party and $11,190 to the Nationals. The gas
industry lobby, the Australian Petroleum Production and Exploration
Association (APPEA), was also a significant donor. [APPEA donated a combined total of $24,990 to the federal Liberal and Nationals parties]
Prime
minister Scott Morrison recently identified gas as a key “transition”
fuel for Australia’s economy, saying “we need to get the gas from
under our feet”.
He also recently struck a a $2bn deal with the New
South Wales government to increase gas supply and reduce greenhouse
gas emissions from the electricity sector…..
The
federal Liberal party also declared two donations from Adani Mining
Pty Ltd totalling $50,000….. [the Australian Electoral Commission identified a combined total of $97,300 as donations directly from Adani Mining Pty Ltd to the federal Liberal and Nationals parties]
Carmichael
Rail Network, another wholly-owned subsidiary of Adani Australia,
gave $50,000 to the federal Liberal party and $100,000 to the
Nationals….. [my red annotations]
THE EFFECT: Requirement to fulfil the terms of the unwritten contract between a political party and its donors
Within the 8 months following the May 2019 federal election the Morrison Government acted to benefit certain of its donors in the gas industry sector.
Santos Limited which had donated a combined total of $42,723 to federal Liberal and Nationals coffers in 2017-18 went on to donate another $78,854 in 2018-19, with this result......
According
to Lock
The Gate Alliance on
31 January 2020:
The
‘energy deal’ announced today between NSW and Federal Governments
looks designed to unleash coal seam gas drilling in north-west NSW,
threatening drought-affected farmers and allowing Santos to drain 37
billion litres of groundwater.
Crucially,
it will do little to bring down greenhouse gas emissions due to its
reliance on dirty, polluting unconventional gas.
Media
reports indicate the NSW Government has been compelled by the
Commonwealth to make a commitment to supply 70PJ of gas for the east
coast market in exchange for up to $2 billion in Federal funding for
renewable energy and unquantified reduction incentives.
The
volume of gas mentioned in the deal is similar to the amount Santos
expects to produce at its proposed water-hungry Narrabri coal seam
gasfield.
To
facilitate the creation of one
or more gasfields
in
north-west New South Wales the Berejiklian Coalition Government held a second hearing into the NSW Chief Scientist’s recommendations on coal seam gas in NSW on 4 February 2020.
As the Berejiklian Government failed to act on the Chief Scientist's original recommendations, this second hearing was a cause for concern......
CSG
hearing round 2 must deliver more than just hot air
The
holding of a second hearing into the NSW Chief Scientist’s
recommendations on coal seam gas in NSW is evidence the Berejiklian
Government is not prepared to deal with the repercussions of the
destructive industry, according to Lock the Gate Alliance.
The
hearing, to be held tomorrow, is only happening because the
Government was unable to properly answer questions about CSG at the
original hearing, held in December last year.
Lock
the Gate NSW coordinator Georgina Woods said it was even more crucial
than ever now for the Government to answer questions about its
forgotten promises on coal seam gas, given the state and federal
governments look poised to sacrifice the north west following last
week’s energy deal announcement.
“It
was deeply troubling to watch government representatives scratch
their heads when asked basic questions about their oversight of this
damaging industry at the last hearing. It demonstrated an alarming
lack of attention to the serious risk coal seam gas poses to
groundwater in North West NSW,” Ms Woods said.
“Last
week’s energy deal with Canberra has raised the very real risk that
state and federal governments will run roughshod over the facts and
heap political pressure on planning authorities to approve Santos’
destructive Narrabri coal seam gas proposal.
“This
inquiry has shown how unready and unaware the Government is for the
environmental, social and economic damage that will inflict.
“There
is still time to stop Santos’ Narrabri gas project from puncturing
holes in a recharge aquifer of the Great Artesian Basin, one of
western New South Wales’ most precious groundwater resources. There
is still time to make this important area a no-go zone for coal seam
gas and safeguard the water resources of north west New South Wales.”
Ms
Woods said it was clear from the last hearing that major
recommendations made by the Chief Scientist had not been implemented.
“The
biggest gaps include failure to provide a three-tiered environmental
insurance scheme, failure to establish a standing expert committee,
and failure to develop systems that can detect cumulative impacts of
the industry on precious water resources,” she said.
“There
are 11 expired and unused legacy coal seam gas licences languishing
over the farmland, towns, and precious water resources of the
drought-stricken north west that have never been through the
Government’s new system for assessing areas for gas exploration.
“The
NSW Government is leaving farming communities in the north west
exposed to unforeseen and irreversible loss or contamination of water
resources and other environmental and health impacts from the CSG
industry.
“We
need a reset from the Government that prioritises water security,
people, and the needs of future generations and that means stopping
the Narrabri gasfield.”
Brisbane Times reported on 3 February 2020 concerning the Adani Group's strategically timed donations:
On April 5, $12,500 was donated to the Liberal Party; that was four days before then-Environment Minister Melissa Price signed off on the groundwater management plans for Adani's central Queensland mine.
Another $100,000 was donated to both parties in the month after Ms Price gave final federal approvals to the mine.
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