Friday, 2 August 2013
Premier O'Farrell sacks NSW Finance Minister
Under cover of the noise created by the corruption findings against former Labor minister Ian McDonald and Labor MP Eddie Obeid, Barry O'Farrell gets on with the business of sacking his own Finance Minister.
The Illawarra Mercury 1 August 2013:
NSW Finance Minister and Minister for the Illawarra Greg Pearce has been sacked for breaching the ministerial code of conduct just weeks after he returned to the job from stress leave.
NSW Premier Barry O’Farrell said he told Mr Pearce of his decision over the phone at 1.45pm today….
After previously standing by Mr Pearce, Premier Barry O’Farrell today said the finance minister had failed to declare a conflict of interest in appointing lawyer Richard Fisher to the board of Sydney Water…
Mr Pearce had been under fire in recent months following allegations that he was drunk in Parliament and that he had rorted the ministerial travel guidelines over a trip to Canberra.
A report by the Department of Premier and Cabinet in June found that Mr Pearce had breached the state government’s ministerial travel guidelines when he booked a private trip to Canberra through the government’s travel agency.
Mr Pearce paid for the bill upon his return, but saved himself $188 by using the contractor.
Mr Pearce apologised for his actions before announcing that he was taking a month off to recover from ‘‘stress and exhaustion’’…..
Labels:
NSW government,
NSW politics,
O'Farrell,
political probity
Popular Yamba-ites relocate to Cowra
Long term Yamba residents Jim and Georgina See have opted for a tree change. The Cowra Guardian reports that Jim and Georgina are operating a business in the town.
Read more about Jim and Georgina here.
Best wishes Jim & Georgina!
Credit: Image and text from the Cowra Guardian
Labels:
Cowra,
The Cowra Guardian,
Yamba
NSW Nationals MP for Clarence 'Lazybones' Gulaptis and hollow crowing on Facebook and in the media
This was NSW National Party MP for Clarence Chris Gulaptis on his Facebook page on 18 July 2012:
Clarence Valley Regional Airport will get a much-needed $2.12 million upgrade thanks to a generous loan subsidy from the NSW Government’s Local Infrastructure Renewal Scheme.
What a pity that it not-so-innocently slipped his mind that the O’Farrell Government was only offering a NSW LIRS Round One 4 per cent subsidy of the market interest rate and that this involved Clarence Valley Council taking out a $1.06 million third party loan with the balance of the upgrade costs unmet as yet.
Full funding for the $2.12 million regional airport upgrade did not come about until a further $1.06 million came from the Federal Labor Government as a Round Four grant by the Regional Development Australia Fund announced on 12 June 2013 – almost a year later.
Not that much for Gulaptis to crow about there – most of the spade work appeared to have been done by Federal Labor MP for Page Janelle Saffin and Clarence Valley Council.
Chris Gulaptis was back using his favourite political ploy again in August 2013.
This time taking credit for a $3 million commercial loan that Richmond Valley Council is taking out to upgrade the Casino Regional Livestock Exchange.
The Northern Star 1 August 2013:
Member for Clarence, Chris Gulaptis, yesterday announced the council had been awarded a low-interest loan under the NSW Government's Local Infrastructure Renewal Scheme at a fixed 3% interest.
Of course what is really happening is that the O'Farrell Government is granting a 3 per cent subsidy of the market interest rate on a third party loan as part of NSW LIRS Round Two.
And just as before, it is the Federal Labor Government which has provided a grant to improve cattle delivery and receival into the saleyards - this time for a total of $636,000 under the Heavy Vehicle Safety and Productivity Program. Update: Plus a $3.5 million grant under the Federal Government's Round Five of the Regional Development Australia Fund announced on 6 August 2013.
Once more the heavy lifting appears to have been done by Ms. Saffin and Richmond Valley Council.
Chris Gulaptis was back using his favourite political ploy again in August 2013.
This time taking credit for a $3 million commercial loan that Richmond Valley Council is taking out to upgrade the Casino Regional Livestock Exchange.
The Northern Star 1 August 2013:
Member for Clarence, Chris Gulaptis, yesterday announced the council had been awarded a low-interest loan under the NSW Government's Local Infrastructure Renewal Scheme at a fixed 3% interest.
Of course what is really happening is that the O'Farrell Government is granting a 3 per cent subsidy of the market interest rate on a third party loan as part of NSW LIRS Round Two.
And just as before, it is the Federal Labor Government which has provided a grant to improve cattle delivery and receival into the saleyards - this time for a total of $636,000 under the Heavy Vehicle Safety and Productivity Program. Update: Plus a $3.5 million grant under the Federal Government's Round Five of the Regional Development Australia Fund announced on 6 August 2013.
Once more the heavy lifting appears to have been done by Ms. Saffin and Richmond Valley Council.
Abbott's Army blots its copybook again
Brisbane Times on the subject of Ben Riley, 26 July 2013:
Suspended Young LNP campaign director.
Photo: Twitter
The website Crikey reported that Mr Riley, the immediate past president of the Young LNP, had been suspended for six months for taking a pair of boots from a stand at the LNP state convention on Friday night.
Mr Riley is said to have taken a pair of oversized RM Williams boots while intoxicated and wore them out, spilling alcohol over them before trying to rectify his mistake by paying for them the next morning.
Google cache of Young Liberal Movement of Australia Executive page of 11 July 2013:
Labels:
Liberal Party of Australia
Thursday, 1 August 2013
CSG industry begins to spend "multi-millions of dollars" to drown out Northern Rivers and other communities across Australia
Ad News 30 July 2013:
The peak body representing Australia's oil and natural gas producers has launched a multimillion-dollar public awareness campaign to warn of the dangers to the economy of a slowdown in the industry.
The Australian Petroleum Production & Exploration Association, which represents more than 80 full member companies and 250 associate member companies, kicked off the 'Our Natural Advantage' campaign last night.
A spokesperson for APPEA declined to comment on the exact amount but said the spend was "significant" and "in the multi-millions of dollars". The TV ads will be supported by print and radio……
The Australian Petroleum Production & Exploration Association, which represents more than 80 full member companies and 250 associate member companies, kicked off the 'Our Natural Advantage' campaign last night.
A spokesperson for APPEA declined to comment on the exact amount but said the spend was "significant" and "in the multi-millions of dollars". The TV ads will be supported by print and radio……
Apparently Northern Rivers communities and residents who do not support the likes of Metgasco and ERM Power are unpatriotic and uncaring because we will not allow director-shareholders to fill their bank accounts at the expense of our own existing regional economies, amenity, lifestyle and an environmentally sustainable future for local families....
http://youtu.be/Bzm0cyJDbjU
Unfortunately for APPEA and Metgasco the Australian media is not always obliging:
Australian Financial Review Editorial & Opinion, 30 July 2013
Metgasco joins in the blamefest with an email round robin delivering this message from CEO Peter Henderson:
Unfortunately for APPEA and Metgasco the Australian media is not always obliging:
Australian Financial Review Editorial & Opinion, 30 July 2013
Labels:
advertising,
Coal Seam Gas Mining,
propaganda
Homeless Persons Week 5-11 August 2013
Labels:
Australian society
Toll Holdings: Tents R Us
Toll Holdings has a business.
Camp
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Tony Abbott sprung pinching pennies while pleasing powerful mates.
From pages 133 to 138 of Toll Holdings Appendix 4E Preliminary Final Report for year ended 30 June 2012 there is a complete list of companies controlled by Toll - feel free to knock yourselves out figuring exactly who might be filling Tones' campaign coffers.
The Sydney Morning Herald 30th July 2013:
A logistics company that stands to profit from the Coalition's "tent city" on Nauru funded the trip of its immigration spokesman Scott Morrison and a journalist and photographer from News Corporation to the remote island to announce the plan.
The trip to Nauru was facilitated by Toll Holdings, which has multimillion-dollar contracts already to help handle asylum seekers and is eager for more business in the area.
Other news outlets were not invited to travel with Mr Morrison, leading to News Corporation's newspapers reporting an “exclusive” story that the Coalition would set up a “tent city” on Nauru to house at least 2000 asylum seekers.
It is understood Toll Holdings chartered the flight for the Coalition and News Corporation.
Contacted on Tuesday morning, Mr Morrison's office had no policy documents to accompany the announcement, and a spokeswoman advised reporters to get their information from what had been reported in newspapers. Mr Morrison has since issued a press release with broad details of the policy.
News Corporation - formerly known as News Limited - is controlled by Rupert Murdoch, who has made no secret of his support for Opposition Leader Tony Abbott and disdain for Labor…..
The Age 30th July 2013:
Former Commonwealth Ombudsman Allan Asher said accepting funding from a company likely to bid for a contract arising from the policy announcement was "entirely inappropriate".
"I think at any time of the year that would be a questionable thing, but in the context of elections, it just makes it an entirely inappropriate thing to do," he said.
The Sydney Morning Herald June 12 2011:
OPPOSITION Leader Tony Abbott has chartered a private jet to Nauru to discuss asylum-seeker policy, with all expenses picked up by Liberal Party donors.
Mr Abbott wants to press the Coalition's case to reopen an asylum-seeker processing centre on the South Pacific island.
A party spokesman confirmed Mr Abbott and his entourage had chartered a private jet for the trip, and said all expenses had been paid for by Liberal Party donors….
Mr Abbott and the opposition's immigration spokesman, Scott Morrison, are expected to meet Nauruan President Marcus Stephen and senior members of his government to discuss the Coalition's policy of sending those asylum seekers who arrive in Australia by boat to be processed in Nauru….
From pages 133 to 138 of Toll Holdings Appendix 4E Preliminary Final Report for year ended 30 June 2012 there is a complete list of companies controlled by Toll - feel free to knock yourselves out figuring exactly who might be filling Tones' campaign coffers.
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