Abbott votes with Thomson in Parliament on the morning of 30 May 2012

TONY Abbott says the Gillard government only survives because of the tainted vote of Craig Thomson and he’s challenged the Prime Minister to bar the central coast MP from voting. [The Australian 30 May 2012]

In which Abbott, Entsch and Pyne show just how silly they can be on 30 May 2012.....

http://youtu.be/LE16yS_n9HE

In a media doorstop Australian Opposition Leader Tony Abbott himself called, he at first denied outright that he had voted with Independent MP Craig Thomson against a motion to gag Opposition Treasury spokesperson Joe Hockey.

Commonwealth Hansard states differently at approximately 9.10am: 

In division—

The DEPUTY SPEAKER: The Leader of the Opposition was on the floor at the time—that is the chamber. We will now proceed with the vote. The question is that the member be no longer heard.

NOES
Abbott, AJ	Alexander, JG
Andrews, KJ	Andrews, KL
Bandt, AP	Billson, BF
Bishop, BK	Bishop, JI
Briggs, JE	Broadbent, RE
Buchholz, S	Chester, D
Christensen, GR	Ciobo, SM
Cobb, JK	Coulton, M (teller)
Crook, AJ	Dutton, PC
Entsch, WG	Fletcher, PW
Frydenberg, JA	Gambaro, T
Gash, J	Griggs, NL
Haase, BW	Hartsuyker, L***
Hawke, AG	Hockey, JB
Hunt, GA	Irons, SJ
Jensen, DG	Jones, ET
Kelly, C	Laming, A
Ley, SP	Macfarlane, IE
Marino, NB	Matheson, RG
McCormack, MF	Mirabella, S
Morrison, SJ	Moylan, JE
Neville, PC	Oakeshott, RJM
O'Dowd, KD	O'Dwyer, KM
Prentice, J	Ramsey, RE
Randall, DJ	Robb, AJ
Robert, SR	Roy, WB
Ruddock, PM	Schultz, AJ
Scott, BC	Secker, PD (teller)
Simpkins, LXL	Smith, ADH
Somlyay, AM	Southcott, AJ
Stone, SN	Tehan, DT
Thomson, CR	Truss, WE
Tudge, AE	Turnbull, MB
Van Manen, AJ	Vasta, RX
Washer, MJ	Wilkie, AD
Windsor, AHC	Wyatt, KG

***The NSW Nationals Member for Cowper, Luke Hartsuyker, on the NSW North Coast also voted with Thomson.

While the above video of the House of Representatives just prior to the vote shows Abbott’s attempt to leave the Chamber, improperly and in defiance of parliamentary procedure, after the Acting Speaker had called for the doors to be locked on a division.

Not being so swift when not clad in Lycra, he was caught by the Acting Speaker and forced to return to his seat to then take part in the vote.

The Acting Speaker, Deputy Speaker Anna Burke had the last word on the subject:

...it is not for the opposition or the government to accept a member's vote. We need to clarify this: it is for the parliament to accept a member's vote...

End of story.

A Special Event For Australia: Venus crosses the face of the Sun on 6 June 2012

Transit of Venus 2004 from Google Images

Scienceworks:

On the 6th June, Venus will line up directly with the Sun and we'll get to see the planet as a small black dot against the bright Sun. It's an astronomical curiosity today, but in times past it prompted major scientific expeditions. Men devoted their lives to the Transit – some were successful and there were also many tales of despair – as they tried to unlock the true size of the Solar System.

Only six transits have occurred since the phenomenon was discovered – 1639, 1761, 1769, 1874, 1882 and the most recent in 2004. Each has its own story. Like the transit of 1769 that provided the public reason for James Cook's voyage to the Pacific but led him to chart the east coast of Australia.

The transit in June will be the last in our lifetimes. No one will witness this event again until 2117……

The best time to view this phenomenon is thought to be between 8.16am and 8.35am EST as it first moves onto the Sun's face.

Forget Gina - Kev's better half finally made it into The Rich 200 in 2012

Go Razee! You’ve got more heart than Gina any day.

“The Rich 200 remains largely a man’s domain. Just 16 women make the list, up from 15 last year. Many of them are wives of primary wealth creators.

Not so the new entrant. Although Therese Rein’s husband is a former prime minister of Australia (Kevin Rudd) it is her entrepreneurial skill in the employment services industries that has led to her $210 million fortune.”

What Chris said yesterday ...

The Member for Clarence, Chris Gulaptis, provided these little gems yesterday:
"... the Australian public love the monarchy. ... The love of the monarchy has even extended to Pippa's derrière—we just cannot enough of it."
(Mr Christopher Gulaptis (Clarence) [6.34 p.m.]: speaking to the Constitution Amendment (Restoration of Oaths of Allegiance) Bill 2011)

Cripes! We pay good money to have a local represent us in Macquarie Street and that is what we get. Is the bloke for real or is he a fruit cake?

Source: Hansard, NSW Legislative Assembly, 29/5/12

Barham speaks out but Gulaptis keeps quiet on NSW Northern Rivers arts funding

Hansard, NSW Legislative Council, 24 May 2012:

The Hon. JAN BARHAM [10.49 a.m.]: I support the motion moved by the Hon. Mick Veitch. Because the House has important business to deal with today I will speak briefly, but I want to put on the record my support for the motion condemning the closure of regional development offices, particularly in the Tweed. I have had a great deal of involvement with the Tweed office over the years. Over the past 10 years five local government areas on the North Coast have worked collaboratively to develop a strategy for the growth of the creative industries, and we have had some great successes. Future successes will be put in doubt by this move by the Government. It is regrettable, and I hope the Government will review its decision.

The North Coast region is struggling. We are a long way from Sydney, but we have tried to be resilient by looking at opportunities that will benefit the area. The region's reliance on tourism is a matter of concern and the creative industries are seen as an area for jobs creation. The acclaimed author and academic Richard Florida, who writes on the rise of the creative industries, has identified that regions that protect their cultural identity and natural environment attract creative people, and that has certainly been the case on the North Coast. The North Coast has seen the fastest growth in the creative industries sector in Australia, outside the capital cities. The previous Government recognised that growth and provided support. The Tweed regional office has been very successful, with, for example, projects under the Creative Industries Brokers Project resulting in significant outcomes.

Arts Northern Rivers wrote to Mr Andrew Stoner, the Deputy Premier, and Minister for Trade and Investment, raising its concerns. The letter referred to 727 creative industries practitioners in the fashion, music and screen-digital sectors who are registered on the Arts Northern Rivers database. It referred to 416 practitioners who took part in sector-specific professional development and networking events. The letter also informed him about 20 businesses selected for intensive one-on-one business development support, 60 market linkage success stories and The Hive, the Northern Rivers creative industries website. The industry has been working on these projects in a strategic way, guided by evidence-based documents and research, so that in the future we will have an industry that can sit alongside tourism and grow opportunities in our region. That is one reason for the strong support for the rollout of broadband in our area.

The tragedy is that the Government has not recognised the flow-on effect. Often these groups seek support from government agencies, such as NSW Industry and Investment. If they do not receive that support, it may put in doubt their access to other support. I fear this is the case with a related project under NSW Trade and Investment. The reduction in the Regional Industries Investment Fund will have a great impact on the Screenworks organisation, which promotes the development of a screen industry on the North Coast. Filmmakers are flooding to the North Coast to set up their work and home base. The ABC series East of Everything was produced in the region. They said it could not be done, but nearly two years of lobbying resulted in the show being produced there. For many of the screen industry practitioners who are located in the area it was the first time they were able to work professionally and then go home and sleep in their own beds. Most of them have had to travel. It demonstrates that the North Coast has the capability in the screen industry, and Screenworks has been integral in promoting the professionals who are located in the region and attracting business to the area.

Why would the Government put all that at risk? After a decade of planning and working together, this is our future. Local government has been working with the State Government to grow the creative industries sector. This sector provides offsets to tourism and other industries and also supports cultural diversity in the area, an aspect much sought after by the tourism industry. I strongly support this motion. My community on the North Coast is shocked that funding sources and support services are being taken away, after so many years of government commitment. Unfortunately, this move demonstrates a lack of long-term strategic planning by the Government, as well as a lack of respect for the energetic commitment to the North Coast made by many organisations in the region. These organisations have worked hard to convince the Government of an alternative future for the North Coast. A minimal investment will return so much.

In a letter to Mr Stoner, Arts Northern Rivers states that it is very concerned about the decision to reduce activities by NSW Trade and Investment in the Tweed office and the impact it will have on the creative industries. I ask the Government to recognise the concerns that have been voiced. There is no shame in recognising that a mistake has been made. The Government should reverse the decision and work with the people in the region. The amount of money involved is minimal. I appeal to the Government to acknowledge the support for this motion and to reconsider its decision. This is a dangerous move that will have a dramatic impact in the future. Reconsideration of this decision by the Government is important to the people on the North Coast.

So far Clarence MP Gulaptis has kept his mouth firmly shut on this subject. Which is surprising given that the arts are a vital part of regional tourism and of local communities in his electorate.

It's official - size matters!

Phone books will be printed in a bigger font size after complaints from people who have found the new font too small to read.

The Coal Seam Gas Debate in May 2012

He said:

OPPOSITION energy and resources spokesman Ian Macfarlane has launched a passionate defence of coal seam gas, claiming the issue has been "subjected to some of the most disingenuous manipulation" he has seen. In a speech to the House of Representatives on Wednesday night, Mr Macfarlane said some of the debate on the issue had been "downright misleading and dishonest".

She said:

I might take Ian MacFarlane’s indignation a little more seriously - if his Statement of Members' Interests didn't show him accepting air flights and/or hospitality from mining groups, Chevron Australia, Beach Energy and EDI Downer.

Of course he's not alone in accepting the perks of industry lobbying.