Some online responses to NSW Nats Steve Cansdell's announcement that he had given false evidence in a stat dec

A brief selection taken from the comments sections of online newspaper articles, blog posts/comments and Twitter:

He said 'he might have been able to ride out the political storm, but did not it would have been honourable to do so.' Honourable??? After lies and deceit?
And still gets to keep a parliamentary pension. Should hang his head in shame.

this also must cast questions and that the mayor was telling the truth about being offered the nationals pre-selection.

Bloody depressing this - I can't see any question but he had to go - not "tough it out", God almighty!

I'm sure he would have never owned up to it, unless someone had him by the nuts.

So much for Mr law and order. Do as I say not as I do!

What a waste. I hope he makes a comeback in public life, as he has a lot to contribute.

What a waste of a great opportunity for our valley.
Yes he has let us down. So sad for us. I feel betrayed

I have no sympathy and I don't think we need a "comeback" thanks. That aside, I wish him well.

It beggars belief that this guy was an MP. He had not "recognised the gravity of the offence." I am not sure what is worse, deliberately lying on a stat dec or not understanding that this isn't merely an error of judgement- it is a criminal offence. My sympathies to Clarence voters for having either an idiot or a criminal for a member of parliament.

After banging on about law and order for years this man should be ashamed. And to keep his very lucrative parliamentary pension is truly disgusting.

Deputy Premier, Mr Stoner said Cansdell had informed him today of TWO allegations levelled against him.

So why aren't the allegations over misuse of staff allowances being explained?

Never liked him - never voted for him - glad to see the back of him.

There's sure to be more to come on this. Stay tuned.

which staff member took the blame ? more importantly why? What persuasion or influence was used? what are the consequences for h now?

Anyone remember that letter to the editor questioning the legitimacy of Cansdell's last taxpayer-funded study tour overseas? Hhmmmmm....

'I don't think it would have been honourable to ride it out.'
What a crock of poo! By resigning before any charges are laid he manages to retain a parliamentary pension of more than $80,000 a year.

They reckon he might have resigned before being publicly discovered to save his $80,000 or so per annum pension; reported himself to police to get a 25% discount on any sentence he might possibly receive if the matter of falsifying a stat dec ever went to court; announced both actions on a Friday to limit the amount of immediate media coverage in the hope of taking some of the heat out of the disclosure

Didn't Cansdell (who was made parliamentary secretary to the NSW Police Minister) get well over 62% of first preference votes in the Clarence electorate at the recent 2011 NSW election? The man just threw away a seat for life. :-0

A lying NSW Liberal Party Member of Parliament facing gaol. Will George Brandis help the NSW Police this time?

Steve Cansdell should have the same fate as did Marcus Einfeld, maybe reopen Kirkconnell to house him??

re: Cansdell. I usually vote Lib, but wait w/ baited breath 2 c if BOF demands own resignation after 3 MPs SNAFU in 1 year

Rumour Cansdell resigned as 3rd party who stated 'she' was driving car was about to tell all and then more.

The media seem to be treating this offence as a mere peccadillo, but had Cansdell been a labor MP I'm sure it would be a cause of great concern or, more likely, even hysteria and panic.

Steve Cansdell is out. Who is next?

nobody adds 1+1 and suggests that the former staffer whom the newspapers say was going to report the matter is the same staffer who lied for him in 2005 and the very same who is alleging that he abused his parliamentary allowance/s.

Life's journey - an alternating joy and a bitch

 

This brief observation on life with early onset senile dementia can only be viewed as a link, but it’s well worth the mouse click:

http://open.abc.net.au/collections/1-year-in-01yr0in#/items/23zb3zx

 

A preview of a letter to the editor in The Daily Examiner

Will the notorious right winger who regularly rabbits on in the letters column of The Daily Examiner save himself a bit of time and effort and use the letter that appeared above his name in today's paper as a template for his next contribution?
Today the cereal serial letters writer had free shots at a Minister in the Gillard government, so if he's fair dinkum and even-handed tomorrow's edition will carry another effort from him with paragraphs that begin as shown below. All he has to do is insert the name of his hero, the now disgraced former Member for Clarence.

Admission: The cereal / serial error was due to this writer thinking about fruit loops at the time.

Political Independence: what a difference six months makes

Richie Williamson for Clarence on Facebook 12 March 2011:

Real representation needs to be free of party politics to be truly effective. The people of Clarence deserve a state representative whose entire focus is on the electorate.

The Northern Rivers Echo 17 March 2011:

It is for this reason I am proud to be running as an independent. I will always put Clarence first.

The Sydney Morning Herald 17 September 2011:

Mr Williamson, who stood as an independent, said he would be ''willing to have that discussion'' if approached to stand for the Nationals.

The Sunday Telegraph 18 September 2011:

NSW Politics: prized bull to mincemeat

A Week Is A Long Time In Politics says Clarence Valley Today on Sunday 18 September 2011

Here is Steve Cansdell (4th from the right with hat) winning best celebrity hamburger at the Gate to Plate Market one week ago. On Friday he resigned from the New South Wales Parliament as Member for Clarence after making a false statement on a Statutory Declaration over a speeding fine. What do they say about roosters to feather dusters or is that prized bulls to mincemeat in this situation?
Click here for a trip down memory lane.

*Thanks to Mark for allowing this cross-posting

NSW Police media release re NSW Nats Steve Cansdell

 

Just for the record.....

NSW Police Force media release

Man facing charges after allegedly making false statutory declaration - Grafton

Friday, 16 September 2011 04:53:07 PM

Police are conducting investigations into an alleged false statutory declaration for a traffic offence six years ago.

About 12pm on 28 September 2005, a then 54-year-old man was driving a Ford Falcon along the Pacific Highway at Woodburn when his vehicle was allegedly detected travelling in excess of the speed limit.

A speed camera infringement notice was subsequently issued and mailed to the man’s home address.

It will be alleged on 25 October 2005, the man signed a statutory declaration and nominated another person as driving the vehicle.

Police will allege the false declaration was made to avoid the loss of demerit points and subsequent loss of his drivers licence.

About 11:50am today (Friday 16 September 2011) the man attended Grafton Police Station with his legal representative and was spoken to by police.

Investigations into the matter are continuing.

U.S. organic seed growers find friends in their fight against self-replicating GM technology

In the matter of ORGANIC SEED GROWERS AND TRADE ASSOCIATION, et al v MONSANTO COMPANY AND MONSANTO TECHNOLOGY LLC; the summary from the amicus brief lodged by Farm and Ranch Freedom Alliance, Biodynamic Farming and Gardening Association, Carolina Farm Stewardship Association, Ecological Famers of Ontario, Fair Food Matters, International Organic Inspectors Association, Michigan Land Trustees, Natural Environment Ecological Management, Nebraska Sustainable Agriculture Association, Organic Council of Ontario, Slow Food USA, and Virginia Independent Consumers and Farmers Association.

Case 1:11-cv-02163-NRB Document 39 Filed 08/10/11 Page 9 of 23

SUMMARY

Monsanto has a track record of aggressive enforcement of its patent rights. Monsanto has sued or settled with hundreds of farmers, and investigated unknown numbers more. Because of the nature of Monsanto’s patented seeds, the individual Plaintiffs and the farmer members of Plaintiff organizations (hereinafter collectively “Plaintiff farmers”) cannot avoid infringing on Monsanto’s patents unless they entirely abandon growing corn, soybeans, canola, cotton, sugar beets, and, as of this year, alfalfa. While Monsanto tries to downplay the threat of enforcement by pointing to its “commitment” not to sue farmers for “trace” infringement, this provides no enforceable protections for Plaintiffs. Because of the nature of the patented seeds and the realities of farming, it is certain that at least some of the Plaintiff farmers already have more than trace contamination, and the number of such affected farmers will only grow over time. While many of the Plaintiff farmers are certified organic, not all are, so the simple fact that Monsanto has yet to sue a certified organic farmer has no impact on their standing.

Not only does Monsanto’s patented technology inevitably lead to infringement through no fault of the Plaintiffs, but, by their design, the majority of Monsanto’s patented crops only

provide the alleged benefits if a farmer applies herbicides, specifically Roundup®, directly to the crop. Monsanto could easily protect its patent rights by agreeing not to sue for unintentional contamination absent an affirmative action by the farmer to make use of the patented traits. By failing to do so, and instead offering an ambiguous and ultimately meaningless commitment, Monsanto has made it clear that it intends to maintain the threat of patent infringement lawsuits against Plaintiff farmers and those similarly situated.

Plaintiff farmers have, by the simple act of farming corn, soybeans, canola, cotton, sugar beets, or alfalfa crops, undertaken meaningful steps towards infringement. Due to Monsanto’s

decision to release patented seeds and market them for widespread planting, it is now impossible for farmers to remain 100% free of genetically modified crops because of the multitude of ways that contamination can occur.

Given the difficulties in minimizing GM contamination, farmers must make numerous decisions about which steps are worthwhile for them and which steps are not. They are not able

to make these decisions based on their own and their customers’ interests, but must instead make these decisions with the threat of litigation against a giant corporation looming over their heads. The constant threat of a patent infringement suit by Monsanto creates significant, unquantifiable costs for the Plaintiff farmers and similarly situated farmers. Unless this Court allows this case to proceed, the Plaintiff farmers will face the choice of abandoning growing such crops or risking prosecution whenever Monsanto chooses.

More on OSGATA here.

Clarence lawmaker makes the news on the international scene

The Shanghai Daily has picked up and run with a piece on the Cansdell circus.

Read more here.

This is what The Climate Institute told Australia's federal politicians on 11 September 2011

This is what The Climate Institute told Australia's federal politicians – but are those on the Opposition benches listening?

The Climate Institute September 11, 2011 media release:

The independent Climate Institute has launched a new Myth Busters series and mailed the Top 5 to all 225 Members of Parliament on the eve of debate on the Clean Energy Future legislation.

Institute CEO, John Connor, said the mother of all scare campaigns had left many Australians and probably a few politicians confused and wrongly forecasting economic doom and gloom.

“We have launched these new Myth Busters to correct the record. Australia is a big polluter. We can have significant pollution reduction while growing jobs. Australia is at no risk of leading the world in taking action.”

“Instead, taking decisive action now will open up new clean energy opportunities, creating up to 34,000 new jobs in the electricity sector alone by 2030, and ensure our industries remain globally competitive as the world switches to cleaner energy and cleaner economies.

“It’s time for our politicians to stop the squabbling and remove the sensationalism that has dominated this issue and get on with a mature debate on the challenges and opportunities of taking action.”

“We’ve written to all MPs, providing them with a package of ‘Myth Busters’ to set the record straight on pricing and limiting pollution, and the real implications and opportunities for Australia.”

Each MP has been sent a package of five ‘Myth Busters’:

1. MYTH: Australia is not a significant polluter so there is no need for us to act.

• FACT: Australia is the world’s 15th largest total emitter and has the highest amount of emissions per person among the major polluters (Figures 1 and 2).1 Whilst Australia accounts for around 1.5 per cent of global emissions, our total pollution levels are comparable to those of Mexico, United Kingdom, South Korea, Italy, France and the Ukraine. This is despite the fact all of these nations have populations at least twice that of Australia.

2. MYTH: A price on pollution will not do anything to help the environment.

• FACT: A price on pollution will make new cleaner energy technologies relatively cheaper than older dirtier sources. As products and services made from cleaner energy sources become cheaper, businesses and households will change their investment and purchasing decisions to save money, meaning the Australian economy will increasingly rely on cleaner energy sources like gas, solar and wind. Over time, this will decrease the amount of carbon pollution Australia produces. Combined with the action of other countries this can help avoid accelerating climate change.

3. MYTH: A pollution price will see the demise of mining and other sectors. There will be massive job losses.

• FACT: Pollution reduction and jobs growth are not mutually exclusive. All credible studies show strong employment growth under a pollution price and in the transition to a low carbon economy. It’s estimated we’ll see an additional 1.6 million jobs between now and 2020 whilst cutting pollution by at least 159 million tonnes. Even the coal industry is expected to see between 10,000-16,000 new mining jobs above 2008 levels.

4. MYTH: Other countries aren’t acting so why should Australia move ahead of the rest of the world?

• FACT: All major economies are acting on climate change, driving clean energy investment and developing new green industries. There is absolutely no risk of Australia moving ahead of the rest of the world; the far greater risk is that Australia gets left behind.

5. MYTH: If you have a pollution price then you don’t need other clean energy measures.

• FACT: A pollution price is central to how we begin to effectively address carbon pollution levels; however, it’s not the only policy measure we need to undertake. Complementary policies, that drive renewable energy development, promote energy efficiency and promote farm sector solutions, also need to be an important part of Australia’s holistic and lower cost response to climate change.

The full set of ‘Myth Busters’ is available here.
For further information:
John Connor | CEO, The Climate Institute | 02 8239 6299
Tom Laurie | Communications, The Climate Institute | 03 9600 4039

SEVERE WEATHER ALERT: Sh#t storm about to hit Clarence electorate

Well here we all sit on the NSW North Coast barely having drawn breath after the March 2011 state election and yesterday voters in the Clarence electorate found out that they have to endure the wannabe pollie pain all over again.
The not-so-honourable Nats MP for Clarence, Steve I didn't know the pen was loaded Cansdell was forced to resign amid allegations that he had laid false evidence in the form of a sworn statutory declaration to avoid the penalty attached to a driving offence (apparently admitted) and improperly used his parliamentary allowance (strongly denied).
He may have saved his pension by going to the police and confessing the former (even if he could yet face charges) but the latter may see him answering to ICAC as well sometime down the track.
What makes it worse is the fact that in July 2005 Cansdell went to the local newspaper wanting 'zero tolerance' in the case of young offenders and since then has mouthed off about a local magistrate, been forced to publicly apologise to others found not guilty by the courts, and yes was caught speeding again.
Antony Green hit the nail on the head when he observed "Despite it being a state by-election, the prospects are that the federal Coalition will want to make more of this by-election than the state Coalition, and certainly more than either state or federal Labor."
Yep, Tony Abbott and Co. will probably make life miserable for local voters during this election campaign as smear after smear is spread in what one local voter described as a dress rehearsal for 2013.
I listened and read most of what Cansdell stated in the meeja over the course of the day, but never once did I hear him apologise - to the people he was elected to represent - for deceiving and leaving them without representation. An oversight or does he really care so little for the district?

Clarence Electorate By-election - why bother?

According to NBN TV news the sudden exit from state parliament by former member for Clarence, Steve Cansdell, who has some not insignificant worries on his plate, the major parties are falling over themselves to have Richie Williamson stand at the by-election.
Williamson stood at the March election as an independent. He finished third behind Cansdell - daylight ran second!
Local wags are saying that this endorses the notion that when an elected member is unable to serve a full term for reasons other than those that are beyond their control, such as an illness, the runner-up ought to get the guernsey (or is that jersey?).

Did Clarence MP, Steve Cansdell, do an "Einfield"?

Shock! Horror!
Steve Cansdell, the NSW MP for Clarence, has thrown in the towel and is quitting state parliament after serving just six months of the current parliamentary term of four years . Early reports suggest the former pugilist may have taken one punch too many, causing him to sign a statutory declaration that contained something significantly less than the truth.

Burrunan Dolphin: celebrating Australian biodiversity in 2011

Monash University September 15, 2011:

They’re one of the most intelligent marine mammals, well known for their inquisitive and playful nature and now, following an amazing discovery by a Monash University researcher, Victoria’s dolphins have been formally recognised as a new species.

Kate Charlton-Robb, a PhD researcher in the School of Biological Sciences unearthed the remarkable findings, which have been published in the latest PLoS ONE Journal, showing that coastal dolphins in southern Australia greatly differed from any other dolphin worldwide.

The dolphins were originally thought to be one of the two recognised bottlenose dolphin species, however by using multiple lines of scientific evidence these dolphins were found to be unique. The discovery was made by comparing skulls, external characteristics and a number of DNA regions from the current day population as well as specimens dating back to the early 1900s.

Ms Charlton-Robb has formally named the new dolphin Tursiops australis with the common name, the Burrunan dolphin, being an Australian aboriginal name given to dolphins in the Boonwurrung, Woiwurrung and Taungurung languages, meaning ‘large sea fish of the porpoise kind’.

“This is an incredibly fascinating discovery as there have only been three new dolphin species formally described and recognised since the late 1800s.

Congratulations to Kate Charlton-Robb, Lisa-ann Gershwin, Ross Thompson, Jeremy Austin, Kylie Owen, and Stephen McKechnie for spending those long hours to bring Australia this welcome news and thankyou to Monash University and the unidentified funding stream which allowed this research.

PLoS ONE article here.

Who is further along the human evolutionary path?

Picture 1

Picture 2

Question: Who is further along the human evolutionary path - the unknown male Australopithecus sediba in Picture 1 or the unidentified members of the Republican Party represented by the orange line and the Tea Party represented by the dark red bar in Picture 2?

Answer: The young fella in the first picture. Republicans and Tea Party-ites seem to have stopped evolving before hominids developed opposable thumbs and here's the proof.

O'Farrell Government to rob 68,000 NSW pensioners of millions every year

In 2009 the Rudd Labor Government increased the base rate of Australian pensions.

Since then those NSW pensioners renting social housing (who comprised less than 5 per cent of all public/community housing tenants in the state in 2010) have been fighting a rapacious state government which immediately saw this increase as a jam pot which it could dip into in order to improve its fiscal bottom line.

It would do this by taking 25% of the payment increase from the approximately 68,000 pensioners in NSW public housing, nearly one-third of whom are probably 65 years of age or older.

The windfall would come to an estimated $13.2 to $16.5 million annually for the NSW Government – depending on how many lone person households there are in this group.

In September 2011 the O’Farrell Coalition Government announced in the budget papers that it intends to commence stealing these millions from elderly, disabled and widowed pensioners.

NSW Nationals MPs who dominate North Coast electorates are remarkably silent concerning this theft. Why should they care - after all they are sitting quite comfortably on a salary package of over $140,000 per year plus an electoral allowance.

Those old hoax emails are doing the rounds again

A case of what goes around, comes around……..

A hoax email tailored for local scenes:

***

Subject: CHECK YOUR RECEIPTS/THIS IS NOT A JOKE PLEASE READ

CHECK YOUR RECEIPTS BEFORE LEAVING THE CHECK-OUT

I bought a bunch of stuff, over £150, & I glanced at my receipt as the cashier was handing me the bags. I saw a cash-back of £40. I told her I didn't request a cash back & to delete it. She said I'd have to take the £40 because she couldn't delete it. I told Her to call a supervisor. Supervisor came & said I'd have to take it.. I said NO! Taking the £40 would be a cash advance against my Credit card & I wasn't paying interest on a cash advance!!!!! If they couldn't delete it then they would have to delete the whole order. So the supervisor had the cashier delete the whole order & re-scan everything! The second time I looked at the electronic pad before I signed & a cash-back of £20 popped up. At that point I told the cashier & she deleted it. The total came out right. The cashier agreed that the Electronic Pad must be defective.

Obviously the cashier knew the electronic pad was defective because she NEVER offered me the £40 at the beginning. Can you imagine how many people went through before me & at the end of her shift how much money she pocketed?

Just to alert everyone. My co worker went to Milford , Sainsburys last week. She had her items rung up by the cashier. The cashier hurried her along and didn't give her a receipt. She asked the cashier for a receipt and the cashier was annoyed and gave it to her. My co worker didn't look at her receipt until later that night. The receipt showed that she asked for £20 cash back. SHE DID NOT ASK FOR CASH BACK!

My co-worker called Sainsburys who investigated but could not see the cashier pocket the money. She then called her niece who works for the bank and her niece told her this. This is a new scam going on. The cashier will key in that you asked for cash back and then hand it to her friend who is the next person in the queue.

Please, please, please check your receipts right away when using credit or debit cards!

This is NOT limited to Sainsburys; they are one of the largest retailers so they have the most incidents.

I am adding to this. My husband and I were in Sainsburys and paying with credit card when my husband went to sign the credit card signer he just happen to notice there was a £20 cash back added. He told the cashier that he did not ask nor want cash back and she said this machine has been messing up and she canceled it. We really didn't think anything of it until we read this email.

I wonder how many "seniors" have been, or will be, "stung" by this one????

To make matters worse ...THIS SCAM CAN BE DONE ANYWHERE, AT ANY RETAIL OR WHOLESALE LOCATION!!!

BEFORE LEAVING THE CHECK-OUT........CHECK YOUR RECEIPT!!!!!

THIS COULD HAPPEN ANYWHERE. CHECK YOUR RECEIPT BEFORE LEAVING THE STAND. I'VE SEEN PEOPLE DO JUST THAT. NOW I'LL START! PASS THIS ON TO YOUR FRIENDS, KIDS, LOVED ONES.

***

Subject: SOME GOOD ADVICE

CHECK YOUR RECEIPTS BEFORE LEAVING THE CHECK-OUTA New Zealander bought a heap of stuff the other day while holidaying in Australia (over $450), and when he glanced at his receipt as the cashier was handing him the bags, he saw cash out of $20.  
He told her he didn't request any cash and to delete it. She said he'd have to take the $20 because she couldn't delete it. He told her to call a supervisor. The supervisor came and said he'd have to take it.. he said  “NO Bloody way!”
Because taking the $20 would be a “cash advance” against his credit card and he wasn't paying interest on a cash advance!!!!!
If they couldn't delete it then they would have to delete the whole order. So the supervisor had the cashier delete the whole order and re-scan everything! The second time he looked at the electronic pad before he pinned in his number and again cash-back of $20 popped up.
At that point he told the cashier and she deleted it. The total then came out right.  The cashier said that the Electronic Pad must be defective. Obviously the cashier knew the electronic pad was defective because she NEVER offered him any cash after either of the transactions. 
Can you imagine how many people went through before him and by the end of her shift how much money she pocketed?
His wife went into a “Coles Warehouse” last week. She had her items rung up by the cashier. The cashier hurried her along and didn't give her a receipt. She asked the cashier for the receipt and the cashier seemed annoyed but gave it to her. 
She didn't look at her receipt until later that night when back at their hotel. The receipt showed that she had asked for $20 cash. SHE DID NOT ASK FOR ANY CASH, NOR WAS SHE GIVEN IT!
So she called “Coles” who investigated but could not see the cashier pocket the money.  
When back in NZ they then spoke with a friend who works for one of the banks; they told them that this was a “new scam” that was bound to come to NZ, especially around Christmas time.  
The cashier will key in that you asked for cash and then hand it to one of her friends when they next come through the check-out queue.
This is NOT limited to Coles; they are just one of the largest retailers so they have the most incidents.
I wonder how many "seniors" have been, or will be, "stung" by this one????

To make matters worse ... THIS SCAM CAN BE DONE ANYWHERE, AT ANY RETAIL OR WHOLESALE LOCATION!!!
IT COULD HAPPEN ANYWHERE. CHECK YOUR RECEIPT BEFORE LEAVING THE CHECK-OUT........CHECK YOUR RECEIPT!!!!!.  
I've since seen people do just that….. SO NOW I'LL START!

PASS THIS ON TO YOUR FRIENDS, KIDS, LOVED ONES let’s not get ripped off.

State of Play: budget honesty and policy costings in September 2011

This is what the Australian Gillard Government intends to implement:

Main features of the Parliamentary Service Amendment (Parliamentary Budget Officer) Bill 2011

1. The Parliamentary Service Amendment (Parliamentary Budget Officer) Bill 2011 (PSA Bill) would, if enacted, amend the Parliamentary Service Act 1999 , which governs the Parliamentary Departments, and other Acts to establish the Parliamentary Budget Office (PBO) and the position of the Parliamentary Budget Officer (the Officer), and the purpose, functions and governance of the PBO.

2. Specifically, the PSA Bill would:

· Establish the PBO as a fourth Parliamentary Department, establish the Officer as an independent officer of the Parliament, and provide for the employment of PBO staff and the governance framework of the PBO;

· Establish the mandate of the PBO to inform the Parliament by providing independent and non-partisan analysis of the budget cycle, fiscal policy and the financial implications of proposals;

· Establish the functions of the PBO to respond to requests for policy costings and other requests relating to the budget, from Senators and Members of the House of Representatives, with responses able to be undertaken in a confidential manner upon request outside of the caretaker period, and in a manner consistent with the Charter of Budget Honesty Act 1998 (the Charter) during the caretaker period;

· Enable the Officer to enter into arrangements to access information from Australian Government agencies, consistent with other legislative requirements ;

· Establish the duties and authority of the Presiding Officers in regards to the PBO, including overseeing the operation and administration of the PBO; and

· Establish the duties and authority of the Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit (JCPAA) in relation to the PBO, including enabling the JCPAA to consider the operations and work plan of the PBO.

3. The Bill would also amend several other Acts to enable the establishment of the PBO, namely:

· The Charter would be amended to extend the caretaker period in a manner consistent with the definition in the Guidelines on Caretaker Conventions to when a Government is sworn in following an election, clarify access to the election costing functions, minimise the duplication of policy costings, and update references within the Act;

· The Freedom of Information Act 1982 would be amended to include the PBO and the Officer as an exempt agency; and

· The Remuneration Tribunal Act 1973 and the Long Service Leave (Commonwealth Employees) Act 1976 would be amended to ensure that the Acts encompasses the position of the Officer.

4. The PSA Bill forms an important element of broader parliamentary reforms, which will enhance the credibility and transparency of the Commonwealth's already strong fiscal and budgetary frameworks. These changes have been developed in collaboration with the relevant Ministers and their Departments, and with the Presiding Officers.

Financial Impact Statement

5. The proposed amendments have no further impact to the underlying cash balance as funding of $24.9 million was allocated over 4 years to establish the PBO in the 2011-12 Budget.

This is what the Coalition under Tony Abbott asserts that it wants to see, as set out in Shadow Treasurer Joe Hockey's two private members bills:

The Parliamentary Budget Office Bill 2011 seeks to establish a PBO that will be:

· a new body, accountable to the Parliament rather than the Executive, much like the Auditor-General or Commonwealth Ombudsman;

· independent, to enhance the transparency and accountability of the budget process, and help deliver better policy and financial outcomes for Australian taxpayers;

· well resourced, to ensure it is effective;

· tasked with providing objective and impartial advice and analysis across the parliament on the Commonwealth budget and budget cycle, including the impact of major policy announcements; and

· headed by the Parliamentary Budget Officer, who will be appointed by the presiding officers of the parliament on the advice of a committee of senior government officials, with an office of highly trained staff, whose calibre will reflect the Office's status as an independent body.

FINANCIAL IMPACT

Clause 32(4) of the Bill stipulates that:

"The appropriation of funds for the PBO in a non-election year must not be less than 3.5% of the departmental appropriation for the Department of the Treasury."

Charter of Budget Honesty Amendment Bill 2011

OUTLINE

The Charter of Budget Honesty Act (1998) was intended to produce better fiscal outcomes through institutional arrangements to improve the formulation and reporting of fiscal policy.

A key element of the Charter were arrangements for more equal access to Treasury and Finance costings of election commitments by the Government and Opposition.

One shortcoming of these arrangements for the Opposition is that they require the agreement of the Prime Minister for Opposition costings to be submitted to the Departments of the Treasury and Finance.

They also require the public release of the costing of a policy which has been submitted.

These arrangements create an environment where costings are not confidential and cannot be challenged or reviewed prior to being made public.

The Coalition has introduced the Parliamentary Budget Office Bill 2011 which seeks to establish an independent statutory authority which will provide objective and impartial advice and analysis on:

· The Commonwealth Budget and budget cycle;

· Medium and long-term budget projections;

· The costs of policy proposals; and

· Other matters as requested by Members and Senators.

The policy costing function of the PBO will differ from that in the Charter of Budget Honesty. Requests by non government MPs or Senators for policies to be costed will not require the agreement of the Prime Minister. Further, the costings will be confidential as they will not be able to be released to the public without the express approval of the relevant MP or Senator.

The costings provision in the PBO will supersede and make redundant the comparable provision in the Charter of Budget Honesty.

The Charter of Budget Honesty Amendment Bill 2011 removes the redundant provisions from the Charter of Budget Honesty.

FINANCIAL IMPACT

This Bill will have no financial impact.

While this is what the House of Representatives 12 September 2011 debate reveals concerning the Coalition's bills:

·         Should Joe Hockey's bills fail to pass and the government's poor imitation of a costing service pass this place, the coalition will not submit its policy costings to either the Treasury or the PBO prior to the election.

··         The MP or senator requesting  a costing will control the timing of the release of the policy costing  and No longer will requests for policy costings and the costings themselves be published as soon as they are received and prepared by the departments of Treasury and Finance. This provision applies at all times, even during an federal election campaign, and the electorate may never be told of the costings advice received because it must provide for policies not to be released at all if that is the decision of the relevant parliamentarian.

·         The Parliamentary Budget Officer cannot publish anything in relation to a request to provide advice made by an individual Member or Senator without the consent of the Member or Senator.

·         The Prime Minister can withdraw his/her own formal request for costings advice but the Leader of the Opposition cannot withdraw his/her own request once it has been submitted.

·         The Coalition's Budget Office would in practice be overseen in many of its functions by the Minister for Finance and not by Parliament.

·         The Attorney‑General can forbid the Budget Office to publish certain information or disclose this information to Parliament, particularly if the federal government of the day wished to keep sensitive information from a state government.

It would appear that under any future Abbott Government voters are to be kept in the dark about all problems concerning the cost implications of existing policy and/or election campaign promises.

Jaysus wept buckets - it's the other climate theory!

The basic argument which appears to be put forward here (by journalist Anne Jolis writing in The Wall Street Journal) is what has been called ‘The Other Climate Theory’ ie., solar winds affect cloud formation and clouds initiate temperature increases and therefore are a cause of global warming, which is ergo beyond human control.
“The theory has now moved from the corners of climate skepticism to the center of the physical-science universe: the European Organization for Nuclear Research, also known as CERN. At the Franco-Swiss home of the world's most powerful particle accelerator, scientists have been shooting simulated cosmic rays into a cloud chamber to isolate and measure their contribution to cloud formation. CERN's researchers reported last month that in the conditions they've observed so far, these rays appear to be enhancing the formation rates of pre-cloud seeds by up to a factor of 10. Current climate models do not consider any impact of cosmic rays on clouds.”
The article attracted over 1,000 comments and gave rise to this video, that in its turn further distorts CERN’s ongoing research which does not draw a link between clouds and climate change:




http://online.wsj.com/video/the-other-climate-theory/DDA61D17-339F-4F0F-95E3-325026562A7F.html

I have to wonder why reputable scientists bother to publish rebuttals such as this when the Murdoch meeja just writes what it wants to believe.

Australian companies in U.S. 'whistleblower' litigation

1. According to U.S. ABC News on 6 September 2011 Alphapharm P/L, an Australian subsidiary of multinational Mylan Inc, is accused of defrauding the American Government:

Three generic drugmakers are being accused in a whistleblower lawsuit of scheming to overcharge the government by tens of millions of dollars for medicines.

The U.S. Attorney's office on Tuesday joined in the lawsuit, brought by Chicago pharmacist Bernard Lisitza.

His attorneys alleged in a 162-page complaint unsealed Tuesday afternoon that Par Pharmaceuticals Companies Inc. of Woodcliff Lake, N.J., and two foreign generic drugmakers overcharged the Medicaid program by getting pharmacies to dispense different, more-expensive, dosage forms than what was prescribed.

Attorneys Michael Behn and Linda Wyetzner said the three companies got pharmacies to illegally switch from generic versions of Prozac and Zantac to Par's more costly products so it could charge Medicaid more.

The other defendants are sister companies, Alphapharm PTY Ltd. of Australia and Canada's Genpharm ULC, both accused of helping to run the scheme and manufacture or procure the medicines.

The lawsuits are listed as UNITED STATES OF AMERICA ex rel. BERNARD LISITZA, States ex rel. BERNARD LISITZA, and BERNARD LISITZA, individually v. PAR PHARMACEUTICALS, et al - Northern District of Illinois, 06 C 6131.

The San Francisco Chronicle on 6 September reported that; The U.S. didn't join the suit against the Mylan units.

Mr. Lisitza has a history of successfully bringing whistle blower suits against drug companies.

If this entry below is correct then a Bernard Lisitza of Illinois appears to have a less well-known background:

Bernard Lisitza, Northbrook and Itasca Prescription Pharmacy, Northbrook – pharmacist license

(051-025359) of Lisitza indefinitely suspended for a minimum of nine months, and Itasca Prescription

Pharmacy license (054-003249) and controlled substance license revoked, due to a felony conviction in federal

court for purchasing and trading a prescription drug; purchasing drugs that did not have intact safety seals,

manufacturers’ boxes and packaging inserts with the intent of reselling the drugs to the public; and, filling

prescriptions for patients in nursing homes by placing in blister packages misbranded drugs that were

manufactured in Mexico and not approved for distribution in the United States.

2. OC Weekly on 9 September 2011 reported that the U.S. arm of the Australian company manufacturing NADS is in the firing line in Orange County Superior Court Case No. 30-2011-00497156, in what appears to be a counter suit to Sue Ismiel and Daughters US Inc v. Robert Spetner et al which accuses the defendant of mail tampering:

This is SI&D response to the lawsuit alleging that it fired a company executive when he encouraged SI&D to issue a U.S. recall notice for a known defective product, Nad’s Body Hair Removal Strips:

"In response to legal action initiated by SI&D (US) Inc against its former president, Robert Spetner, due to his wrongfully having seized control of the Company's mail, Mr. Spetner has filed a cross-complaint in which he groundlessly and falsely alleges that he was terminated because he had engaged in "whistle blowing" and presented other meritless claims against the Company. SI&D categorically denies these allegations and will defend them vigorously. In point of fact, the Company appropriately terminated him due to poor performance and serious misconduct that directly benefitted him at the expense of the Company and it is our intention to pursue further legal action against Mr. Spetner in this regard.

The substantive issues raised in Mr. Spetner's complaint are riddled with factual errors and outright misrepresentations that stand in stark contrast to our 14-year record of conducting an ethical and successful business in the United States that is founded on providing our customers and retail partners with great products and excellent service. Contrary to the tenor of Mr Spetner's complaint, we are proud to endorse the quality and efficacy of our award-winning range of Nad's depiliatory products that are available at leading retailers throughout the US, Great Britain and Australia/New Zealand.

As this matter is currently the subject of litigation, we have been advised by counsel to limit further public comment on this matter pending its legal resolution."

Coincidentally the ACCC published an Australian recall notice for Batch 10642 of Nad's Brazilian and Bikini Wax on 3 August 2011.

Godwin Alert!

Sinclair Davidson over at Catallaxy Files headed his short post on government as threat to free speech and media self-regulation with this little pictorial gem. Thereby demonstrating Godwin's Law lives on.

Stosur defeated American tennis cheat to win US Open

Australia's Sam Stosur kept a cool head to defeat America Serena Williams 6-2 6-3 in the final of the US tennis open. After Stosur comprehensively won the first set Williams showed what a sad example she is of the Ugly American when she displayed exceptionally poor sportsmanship.
Williams screamed, "COME ON!" before a point was over - that's a dead-set breach of the rules. And if that wasn't enough, Williams then turned and emptied her bile on the umpire.
Clearly, Williams was being outplayed so she resorted to the tactics of a cheat and did her best to break Stosur's game.
Williams continued to heap cr*p on the umpire, bad-mouthing her with remarks, "Don't even look at me," ...  "You're very unattractive inside. Who would do such a thing? Don't even look at me. Don't look my way. You're punishing me for expressing my emotion."
Well played Sam Stosur!