Tony Watch (3)

Given that there is currently not a single politician in Liberal or Nationals ranks who would make even a half-decent Australian prime minister, speculating on who might replace Malcolm Bligh Turnbull is to venture down into the dark pages of a horror story.

However, I’m willing to wager that the right-wing nutters currently infesting both parties will be whipped into a frenzy if polling numbers like those set out below continue.

Former Liberal prime minister John Anthony "Tony" Abbott was first out of the barrier with a 'helpful' comment to journalists. 

Skilfully he wielded a sharp blade by pointing out that his government's lowest polling occurred at after an "excellent" trip to Asia in 2014 to finalise the Japan free trade agreement and making "giant strides" towards one with China, then contrasting 
Turnbull's even lower polling as having come after what Tony reportedly described as a modest but significant move towards budget repair.

The  Australian reporting on Newspoll results, 26 September 2016:

The Coalition’s primary vote has tumbled below 40 per cent for the first time under Malcolm ­Turnbull’s prime ministership and is now lower than when Tony Abbott was dumped as leader a year ago.

The latest Newspoll, taken ­exclusively for The Australian, also reveals Labor has seized a two-party-preferred lead of 52 per cent to the Coalition’s 48 per cent — the opposition’s biggest lead since Mr Turnbull took power.

Mr Turnbull remains the preferred prime minister over Bill Shorten, but less than a third of voters are satisfied with his performance while more than a half are ­dissatisfied.

The poll of 1662 voters, taken from last Thursday to Sunday, shows the Coalition’s primary vote has fallen three points in the past fortnight to 38 per cent and is down four points since the election 12 weeks ago.

Aside from the post-election slump for Julia Gillard’s government, which took only three weeks to lose four points after the 2010 election, it is the quickest ­decline in primary vote by a re-elected government in the 32-year history of Newspoll.

In the final Newspoll under Mr Abbott’s leadership in September last year, the Coalition’s primary vote was 39 per cent. It peaked at 46 per cent under Mr Turnbull, was 42.1 per cent at the election and has now fallen to 38 per cent.

Support for Labor has risen one point in the past fortnight to a four-month high of 37 per cent, while the Greens have gained one point to 10 per cent and other parties and independents have climbed a combined one point to 15 per cent.

Based on preference flows from the July election, Labor has a two-party-preferred lead of 52 per cent to the Coalition’s 48 per cent…….

When Mr Turnbull launched his challenge against Mr Abbott, he cited the fact the Coalition had lost 30 consecutive Newspoll ­surveys.

Mr Turnbull has now been leader for 21 Newspoll surveys and the Coalition has won nine, Labor has won five and there have been seven tied.

Mr Turnbull’s own standing with voters has continued to fall to new lows. Satisfaction with his performance fell two points to 32 per cent and dissatisfaction rose two points to 55 per cent.

It leaves Mr Turnbull with a net satisfaction rating of minus 23 points, a deterioration of four points in the past fortnight and a 61-point drop from his honeymoon peak last November of plus 38 points.

Mr Shorten has a higher ­satisfaction rating of 36 per cent, up one point, and a lower dissatisfaction measure of 51 per cent, down one point.

The Labor leader’s net satisfaction rating has improved from minus 17 to minus 15 points.

The only measure where Mr Turnbull has consistently remained ahead of Mr Shorten is on the question of who is the better prime minister, where his support rose one point to 44 per cent while Mr Shorten gained two points to 33 per cent.

Mr Turnbull has lost 20 points since his peak of 64 per cent last December while Mr Shorten has more than doubled his support since reaching the equal-record low for a Labor leader of 14 per cent…..

Queensland Government being sued to finally return other people's money

ABC News, 23 September 2016:

Lawyers say a class action in Queensland over unpaid wages to Aboriginal people is setting a national precedent, as dozens more come forward in other states to say they were not paid properly.

More than 300 people are suing the Queensland Government in the Federal Court, which held money in a trust that should have been paid to them as labourers or domestic workers more than half a century ago.

Rebecca Jancauskas, from Shine lawyers, said the class actions first directions hearing this week had revealed that the litigation proceedings would be speedy because of the advanced age of the claimants.

"It was clear that these claims are being taken seriously by federal court bench," she said.

"And proceedings have set the tone for litigation in other states where protectionist legislation was in place and wages were withheld from Indigenous people.

"So what we're doing at Shine is investigating bringing proceedings in other states — including the Northern Territory, Western Australia and NSW."……

The Queensland Government did set up a reparations scheme in 2002, but Ms Jancauskas said claimants only received between $2,000 and $7,000 for decades of work as labourers, stockmen or domestic servants.

"The amount they received through the reparations scheme was but a fraction of the money that the Government is holding in trust for them," Ms Jancauskas said.

"Had people received their entitlements through reparations schemes, then there would be no need for litigation to be pursued."

Those who took part in the scheme had to sign a deed of release, stopping them from taking further action.

But Ms Jancauskas said that would not stop them from participating in the litigation.

The perception of Coalition corruption and rorting continues to grow.......

The longer this generation of Liberal and Nationals politicians hold sway at either state or federal level the more apparent it becomes that they have little to no understanding of business ethics or civic responsibility, nor any regard for the damage that even a perception of a conflict of interest can do to the level of public trust in political institutions.

Here is yet another example……

ABC News, 22 September 2016:

John Cotter Jnr.

A company run by prominent Queensland Liberal National Party members was part of a consortium awarded $3 million under a federal infrastructure program, the ABC can reveal.

The money is for a feasibility study for the proposed Urannah Dam in north Queensland.

The $3 million was secured by a consortium that was made up of the community group, Bowen Collinsville Enterprise Inc, and the Brisbane-based venture capital group, Initiative Capital.

Initiative Capital is owned by its chief executive John Cotter Jr and its executive director Gerard Paynter, who say the bid was made through an independent and transparent assessment process, with all funds to be managed by the state.

But the Queensland Government has told the ABC successful funding bids were selected by the Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce and that the Urannah Dam was not even listed as a state priority.

The $3 million for the Urannah Dam study came from National Water Infrastructure Development Fund. The fund called for applications late last year, with a panel of technical experts assessing the bids.

But the fund guidelines state "the Minister for Agriculture and Water Resources [Barnaby Joyce] will be the final decision-maker".

John Cotter Jr is a member of the powerful Queensland LNP state executive and a regional party chair.

LNP sources said he was heavily involved in fundraising at all levels of the party.

When asked by the ABC about fundraising and his roles with the LNP, Mr Cotter said he was not allowed to comment.

"I can only confirm I am [an LNP] member," he said.

But a spokesman for the Queensland LNP confirmed Mr Cotter was on the state executive.

His partner in Initiative Capital, Gerard Paynter, is the Queensland managing director of LNP-aligned lobbying firm Barton Deakin.

Its website describes him as "an experienced Liberal National Party figure having been a Queensland and Federal Young Liberal president and a member of the Queensland state executive for five years".

It says he also has extensive experience in managing LNP state and federal campaigns, including holding a "central campaign role within the LNP for the 2013 federal election".

Mr Paynter told the ABC he did not hold any executive positions within the LNP.

He did not respond to follow up questions……..

The Australian, 27 July 2013:

MEMBERS of Queensland's GasFields Commission and their families enjoy lucrative financial interests in the state's controversial coal-seam gas industry that endanger the statutory body's independence, landholders and activists claim.

The commission, an election commitment by Campbell Newman's Liberal National Party, purports to promote sustainable co-existence between CSG miners and farmers - but critics say it is captive to industry……

Mr Clapham said landholders were concerned about the commissioners' links to gas companies. "To many people it appears the commission is there to facilitate the industry, not to even up the power imbalances. It's there to grease the wheels of the industry," he said.

The son of commission chairman John Cotter is the founder and major shareholder of a Brisbane-based consultancy that has close links to the British-owned Queensland Gas Company, one of four firms developing the state's $65 billion CSG industry.

John Cotter Jr's Flinders Group is involved in the $100 million construction of a jetty at Curtis Island at Gladstone, from where exports of liquid natural gas will begin next year. The Flinders Group has also advised resource firms, including QGC, on accessing land in more than 10 major projects, involving agreements with 1000 landholders.

Mr Cotter Jr said he no longer dealt directly with landowners because of his father's commissioner role and the group had created "Chinese walls" to avoid potential conflicts.

Activist Drew Hutton said the Flinders Group "scopes areas where coal-seam gas companies might need to target properties for gas wells and other infrastructure".

This was in direct conflict with Mr Cotter Sr's role in assisting farmers in dealing with mining companies, he said. "It's another case of where the Queensland government has structured things so landholders are disadvantaged against the might of the coal-seam gas companies."

Mr Cotter Sr, a grazier at Goomeri northwest of Brisbane, said he had no role in his son's business…..

Following closely on the heels of John Cotter Jnr's latest issue came this report in The Age on 26 September 2016:

A Turnbull government MP is facing questions over a series of taxpayer funded travel claims, including more than $2000 for flights to his own wedding in Melbourne.

Western Australian Liberal MP Steve Irons charged taxpayers travel costs of $1346 for a flight on October 18, 2011, three days before he was married at Melbourne's Crown Casino.

The West Australian reported on Monday that following the October 21 ceremony, Mr Irons charged taxpayers $911 for a return flight to Perth on October 25.

The Swan MP said the money had been repaid to the Department of Finance after "a self-audit" of travel expenses in his office.

Mr Irons' wife Cheryle was a Melbourne-based real estate agent at the time of the couple's wedding.

The revelations come days after it was reported that he had also used taxpayer funds to pay for flights to a Gold Coast golf tournament in December 2015.

Mr Irons said he studied golf tourism opportunities at the first stage of the International Team Challenge, after being invited to attend by the Australian PGA.

As chair of the parliamentary friends of sport group, Mr Irons said the trip had not broken any rules on taxpayer funded travel, despite it being claimed as "electorate business".

The December trip included a $258 bill to taxpayers for three nights' travel allowance in Coolangatta and $1875 for a flight from Brisbane to Perth.

A further flight cost is expected to be reported in future releases from the Department of Finance.

Mr Iron's office did not respond to requests for comment…..

Tale of an unsolicited proposal approved by the NSW Iemma Government and distorted out of all recognition by Baird Government

When the people of New South Wales were told of a successful unsolicited proposal for a section of Darling Harbour foreshore land in 2007, this was what they were told the Barangaroo development would eventually look like:

Since then the approved development plan has undergone nine modifications until around a third of the total foreshore parkland area has been reduced to a “promenade” in order to satisfy the Packer family’s desire to build yet another private casino and hotel complex – this one 71 stories high at an estimated cost of $2 billion.

According to the Crown Resorts Limited website:

The Crown Sydney Hotel Resort will be world-class and will feature 350 hotel rooms and suites, luxury apartments, signature restaurants, bars, luxury retail outlets, pool and spa facilities, conference rooms and VIP gaming facilities.

This is what that est. 33 per cent of public parkland in the plan is now expected to look like per the June 2016 NSW Planning Assessment Commission (PAC) approval:

Millers Point Fund Incorporated has been formed by local Millers Point community groups and the matter is now before Justice Nicola Palin in the NSW Land & Environment Court with Minister for Planning Robert Gordon Stokes,  Barangaroo Delivery Authority, Crown Resorts, Lendlease, and the Sydney Harbour Foreshore Authority as respondents.

On behalf of the Millers Point Fund the NSW Environmental Defenders Office (EDO) will be arguing that the PAC was wrong to remove public parkland for private profit.

Sue Higginson, the chief executive officer and principal solicitor at the Environmental Defenders Office, which filed the claim in the Land and Environment Court on Tuesday, said her client's argument was that the PAC had "fettered" its own decision-making.

"Basically we are saying the Casino Control Act doesn't dictate the planning decisions that are made in NSW," Ms Higginson said. "In fact the PAC really is required to make a decision about where a casino can and cannot be built based on planning law," she said.

Ms Higginson said the PAC's error was "so significant that its decision to approve the latest modification to the concept plan and approve the actual construction of the project is invalid and of no effect."

I suspect that the EDO could do with a little financial help as it takes on the legal might of the super-rich and politically powerful. Online donations can be made here.

* Images from the Australian Financial Review and The Sydney Morning Herald

The new Clarence Valley Council meets for the first time

Mayor Jim Simmons (standing) and Deputy Mayor Jason Kingsley (seated)

Shortly after 4pm on 27 September 2016 in an open (show of hands) ballot by the nine recently elected councillors, Cr. Jim Simmons of Maclean was elected Mayor of Clarence Valley Council and Cr. Jason Kingsley of Grafton was elected Deputy Mayor – both for a term of two years.

The new council wasted no time in flexing its muscle on an issue which had been a bone of contention for some time and, perhaps signalled that senior management’s days of almost unfettered ascendancy were drawing to a close and a more democratic balance of power between Council in the Chamber and local government administration was being re-established.

The Daily Examiner, 27 September 2016:

4.45PM: An urgent motion has been brought forward by Cr Andrew Baker, to scrap councillor training scheduled for next month.

Cr Baker described the training, to be held on October 6, as an imminent waste of money, and noted it needed to be debated today as the October meeting falls after that date.

A vote has been held to bring the motion onto the agenda and it is now being discussed.

5PM: IT HAS been revealed a perceived conflict of interest is behind the motion to delay or scrap scheduled councillor training.

The training provider, as well as providing training for councillors, has in the past investigated a code of conduct complaint for the Clarence Valley Council.

5.10PM: Councillor Baker says his stance on the training is about the ability of all councillors to access unbiased training.

"In particular and only from my point of view at this stage," he said. 

"I am unable to participate in any further training proposed by the training provider, simply because in the one and only training session I attended I was provided with advice I considered to be misleading at best."

Cr Baker said advice given in the same training session resulted in a code of conduct complaint against Cr Toms, which she acknowledged.

He added that the training provider was also the probity auditor for the depot project.

"We don't need to rush into training that I will be denied opportunity to go for," he said.

Cr Toms said on the case, a cross claim was dismissed in court in Sydney on Tuesday.  She also said she would not attend the training.

Opposing the motion, Cr Williamson called it a "stitch-up", and said he wouldn't be a part of it. Lysaught also spoke against the motion.

With the support of Novak, Toms, Baker, Ellem and Simmons, the motion was carried.

What this media report does not point out is that certain advice allegedly given to councillors during that training session would have contributed to a legal cost billable to Clarence Valley Council when the cross-claim was dismissed, which was hopefully fully covered by council’s indemnity insurance – otherwise a budget line item just grew in size.

During the meeting it was also heartening to hear Cr. Simmons in his acceptance speech admit that in recent years council’s track record with regard to community consultation had not been good and that this was a matter the new council needed to address.

NSW Political Donations & Election Funding: over the next six months watch for further mentions buried deep in mainstream newspapers

The Sydney Morning Herald on 30 August 2016 indicated that NSW voters may yet see a number of former state politicians fronting local magistrates in the near future:

Former NSW Liberal MPs have been issued letters of demand to repay potentially hundreds of thousands of dollars in illegal donations solicited before the 2011 state election.

As the corruption watchdog prepares to table its report into Liberal Party rorting of political donations laws on Tuesday, Fairfax Media can reveal the NSW electoral commission has issued the demand to some of those caught up in the Operation Spicer inquiry.

The electoral commission has the power to demand repayment of illegal donations. If it is determined that an MP or candidate knew the donation was illegal, they can be forced to repay twice the amount.

An electoral commission spokesman would not release names of those sent the demand, but confirmed it had completed an investigation.

It had "formed the view that sufficient evidence is available to justify recovery action against some of the persons who have received or benefited from unlawful donations, loans or indirect campaign contributions," he said.

"Those persons have been issued with demands for payment. The commission reserves its right to pursue recovery action in the event of non-payment."

It is understood there is some uncertainty over whether the former MPs can be prosecuted under the Election, Funding, Expenditure and Disclosures Act.

The time within which prosecutions can be launched was extended from three to 10 years by Premier Mike Baird in October 2014, but the change only applied to offences committed after that date. The offences in question were committed in 2010.

But there is a question over whether the law could be applied from when they were uncovered by the Independent Commission Against Corruption in 2014 and therefore fall within the original three-year limit…..

The Australian on 31 August 2016 reported that the NSW Liberal Party is still short of funds due to donor identity issues:

The NSW Liberal Party could launch legal action against the NSW Electoral Commission ­if attempts to recover about $4.3 million in withheld campaign funding are unsuccessful.

The party’s state division has been forced to renegotiate millions of dollars in loans taken out from Westpac to cover the shortfall. It is understood division chiefs were hopeful that the findings of Operation Spicer — which found that few within the party’s hierarchy knew about the donations scheme run through the now-­defunct Free Enterprise Foundation — would clear the way for the return of the money.

Instead, it appears the NSW Electoral Commission is continuing to demand the party conduct an audit of all its donations to ­ensure there were no inappropriate third-party donations such as those made through the Free Enterprise Foundation, which took prohibited donations from developers including Brickworks and Elmslea Land Developments.

In a statement, however, the NSW Liberal Party said only that it “continues to work with the NSW Electoral Commission in relation to its 2010-11 return”.

A NSW Electoral Commission spokesman said there had been “no change in relation to the commission’s determination to withhold funding”.

“The party is ineligible for funding on the basis that it has not disclosed the identity of donors for the 2010-11 ­period,” he said. “The party’s eligibility for public funding is not ­related to the ICAC report. Eligibility is prescribed in the Election Funding, Expenditure and Disclosures Act 1981.”

The Daily Telegraph on 22 September 2016 reported that the Liberal Party finally submitted the required donors names and one former Liberal MP has returned $10,000 of the $60,000 in unlawful donations the party received in 2011:

The Liberal Party will get the $3.8 million of the $4.4 million the Electoral Commission withheld from it because of its receipt of illegal donations during the 2011 state election campaign, the Commission has announced in a statement this afternoon.

The Electoral Commission had withheld the money pending what it believed was a proper declaration by the Liberal Party in relation to the illegal developer donations funnelled through the Free Enterprise Foundation and exposed by ICAC.

The Electoral Commission has also announced that it has received a $10,000 payment from former Liberal Charlestown MP Andrew Cornwell, which relates to money he received from developer Jeff McCloy during the 2011 election campaign.

“Following an investigation by inspectors of the NSW Electoral Commission (NSWEC), the NSWEC determined that a number of unlawful donations were made to endorsed candidates of the NSW Liberal Party in the lead up to the 2011 State election.” a statement from the Electoral Commission said.

“This investigation was informed by the Independent Commission Against Corruption’s Operation Spicer.

“One of the matters examined as part of this investigation was a AU$10,000 cash donation for the benefit of former MP Andrew Cornwell.

“That donation was subsequently paid into the account of the Charlestown State Electoral Conference, NSW Liberal Party.

“The NSWEC has the power to take legal action to recover the value of unlawful donations……

On the payment to the Liberal Party, the Commission said: “On 23 March 2016 the NSW Electoral Commission NSWEC determined to withhold almost AU 4.4 million in administrative and election funding from the Liberal Party of Australia, NSW Division (NSW Liberal Party) due to the party’s failure to disclose past donations.

“The donations were primarily made to the party by donors via the Free Enterprise Foundation in the 2010-11 disclosure period.

“On 22 September 2016 the NSWEC determined that a number of these and other undisclosed donations were unlawful and deducted the value of the unlawful donations from the amount of public funding payable to the party.

However ongoing political donation issues are not confined to New South Wales.  North of the Rio Tweed, the Queensland Liberal National Party was reported in the Brisbane Times on 25 September 2016 as having troubles of its own:

A special anti-corruption taskforce has been assigned to investigate claims of dodgy political donations that have embroiled Turnbull government MP Stuart Robert and a Liberal fundraising body he controls.

The investigation comes amid new questions about Mr Robert's connections to property developer Sunland and his support for the company's controversial $600 million plan for two high-rise towers on the Gold Coast.

Mr Robert has admitted his Fadden Forum – a fundraising arm of the Queensland Liberal National Party – was used to secretly bankroll two candidates with $60,000 to run in the March Gold Coast City Council election.

Kristyn Boulton and Felicity Stevenson, who were given $30,000 each, were both members of Mr Robert's staff but ran as independents and did not disclose their Liberal links until after the poll. Ms Boulton was successfully elected while Ms Stevenson failed and returned to Mr Robert's employ.

Political rivals have accused Mr Robert and the LNP of seeking to stack the council by stealth with pro-development councillors.

The Queensland Crime and Corruption Commission this month launched an investigation into the election and has assigned a "specialist team" with political expertise to spearhead the investigation.

It's understood the investigation will seek to examine the provenance of money donated to the Fadden Forum, including suggestions it came from property developers whose involvement was concealed.

One high-profile donor to the Fadden Forum has been Gold Coast developer lobbyist Simone Holzapfel, a former adviser to Tony Abbott, who gave more than $100,000 to the fundraising vehicle.

Pre-European contact stone walls discovered on North Lismore Plateau

Echo NetDaily, 23 September 2016:

Bundjalung elder Mickey Ryan in the area of the plateau where rockwalls are located. (Darren Coyne)

Archaeologists investigating ancient stonewalls and other sites on the North Lismore Plateau believe the area could be as culturally significant as Uluru.

Led by Bundjalung elder Mickey Ryan, the archaeologists from Tocomwall Pty Ltd visited the plateau yesterday as part of a survey of the area’s cultural landscape.

Mr Ryan has been leading the fight to stop a 1500 dwelling development proposed by the Lismore City Council and local landowners.

The council has rezoned the plateau for residential development and has said that development applications would be lodged before the end of the year.

A section of the rockwalls which archaeologists believe pre-date European contact. (Darren Coyne)

But Scott Franks, managing director of Tocomwall, an Aboriginal cultural heritage consultancy firm that provides archaeological, ecological and cultural heritage services across Australia, yesterday told Echonetdaily that such a development would be desecration.

‘I believe it’s as significant as Uluru. I’ve never seen anything like this and I grew up with my old people walking the country. I’ve been in the army and all over Australia and I’ve never seen anything like it … especially not in New South Wales,’ Mr Franks said.

‘I believe it’s highly significant and the council should be turning their minds to ways to protect this. If this area is cleaned up and managed properly, and the right protocols are put in place with the right knowledge holders, I think it could be an unbelievable teaching area for archaeology, and also for tourism.’

‘The council needs to get with it and understand what they’ve got here but it seems they haven’t got a clue.’

Tocomwall’s senior archaeologist Jakub Czastka, who trained at the Institute of Archaeology in London, said the site should be properly surveyed and protected.

‘What I’ve seen up there in terms of the wall alignments and the features most certainly do not conform to European or post-contact practice,’ he said…..

Mr Ryan has vowed to fight any plans to develop housing on the plateau, and has the support of the Bundjalung Council of Elders.