Assistant Treasurer Stuart Robert follows unofficial Liberal Party guideline: Don't get caught but if you do pay it back

Image: The Sydney Morning Herald 2017

Assistant Treasurer and Liberal MP for Fadden Stuart Rowland Robert (right) is in the news once more.

This time over the excessive costs associated with his taxpayer-funded 4G home Internet connection.

He has been charging taxpayers more than a $1,000 a month for Internet access since 2016 and by 2018 the cost had risen to over $2,000 a month.

In May, taxpayers forked out $2,831 for the Assistant Treasurer's internet bill. The bill came to $2,704 in April, $1,686 in March, $1,813 at the end of February, $186 in January and $1,859 at the end of December 2017.

The reasons being given by Robert for why he didn’t avail himself of cheaper alternatives don’t really stand close scrutiny.

Given this Liberal MP’s history (see below) one immediately wonders if a third party individual/ corporation signed his contact with the Internet Service Provider (ISP) and this increased the cost to taxpayers or whether Robert has a pecuniary interest in that particular ISP.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has requested that these expense claims be investigated by Special Minister for State Alex Hawke who himself is under a cloud when it comes to parliamentary expense claims.

Once his parliamentary expenses drew media attention Robert was quick to commit to paying back Internet charges reimbursed by the Dept. of Finance. At a quick estimate that would be somewhere in the vicinity of $25,000, although reportedly he puts the estimate as a little over $20,000.

Parliamentary expense claims are not the only issue for the Member for Fadden.

On 6 October 2018 The West Australian reported that:

A company run by a Federal minister who charged taxpayers $2000 a month for internet access lodged documents removing him as its director only after the matter was queried by The Weekend West.

Until late yesterday ASIC records showed Assistant Treasurer Stuart Robert was a director of an alternative health franchise business, despite Mr Robert telling Parliament a month ago he quit the board of Cryo Australia when he returned to the ministry.

In February 2016 Stuart Robert was sent to the backbench in disgrace after just three years as a federal government minister. 

It is barely six weeks since he returned to the ministry on the back of Scott Morrison’s politically bloody ascendancy and it appears that there has been no lesson learned.

A Brief History

10 FEBRUARY 2016 In which then Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott gives the nod for then Assistant Defence Minister Stuart Robert to help smooth the way for a big Liberal Party donor and Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull inherits a problem

12 FEBRUARY 2016 Minister for Human Services & Minister for Veterans' Affairs showing his contempt for the Australian electorate

14 FEBRUARY 2016 Liberal MP Stuart Robert's resignation as Australian Minister for Human Services raises more questions than it answers

21 FEBRUARY 2016 The Liberal Member for Fadden - drowning not waving

20 MAY 2016 Federal MP Stuart Robert channelled $70,000 from his Liberal Nationals Party campaign fund to three local government candidates

3 OCTOBER 2016 Stuart Robert MP - the archetypal Liberal Party politician

27 SEPTEMBER 2017 Australian Politics in 2017: Financial Fog Unlimited #2

Whitehaven Coal’s Vickery mine extension community consultation has farmers up in arms

Whitehaven Coal Vickery Forest coal mining operation, 2018

Maules Creek section of coal mining operation, 2018

Whitehaven Coal Limited is seeking planning permission to extend its existing mining infrastructure footprint approx. 22kms north of Gunnedah in north-west NSW, by adding a coal processing hub with an on site coal handling and preparation plant (CHPP), train load-out facility and rail spur line to service its open cut mines at Tarrawonga, Rocglen and Werris Creek.

Quite naturally local rural communities are concerned…….

The Northern Daily Leader, 5 October 2018:

The Greens have condemned NSW Planning Minister Anthony Roberts and called his decision to ignore the plea of drought-stricken farmers “the height of arrogance”.

The spraying follows comments Mr Roberts made to The Leader yesterday, where he referred to the 4000-page Vickery coal mine extension report as a “relatively short document”, as he knocked back the request of farmers for more time to read the submission.

Farmers say they are struggling to find time to read and understand the massive document, let alone write a response to it, when they are hand feeding cattle.

Greens resource spokesman Jeremy Buckingham wrote to Mr Roberts in September, seeking to extend the public consultation time from 42 days to 90 days, however is yet to receive a response.

“Minister Anthony Roberts has displayed the height of arrogance in ignoring local farmers and communities and failing to give them a fair chance of responding to a 4000-page document on Vickery coal mine,” Mr Buckingham said.

“Minister Roberts has failed to acknowledge that many local folks are flat out keeping their livestock and farms alive in drought conditions.

“Local farmers and community members have asked for an reasonable extension of time to read thousands of pages of documents and make a considered response, but the Minister won’t listen.

“What does the NSW Government have to hide on this Vickery coal mine proposal?”...

Scott Morrison presents his political agenda as prayer

Even in public prayer Australian Prime Minister and Liberal MP for Cook Scott Morrison is an overbearing specimen - at 1:09 mins into this video he interrupted Planetshakers' minister Russell Evans & took back the microphone in order to keep centre stage and complete what was obviously on his political agenda for the day - the re-election of himself and his government at the forthcoming federal election.

https://youtu.be/GLWuMd0vzBc

Letter of the Week

Letter to the Editor published in The San Francisco Chronicle, 27 September 2018.

Quote of the Week

“Among those things, he said, was a "fair go for those who have a go in this country".

"I think that's what fairness means in this country. It's not about everybody getting the same thing," he said.

"If you put in, you get to take out. And you get to keep more."  

[Australian Prime Minister & Liberal MP for Cook Scott Morrison explaining why only affluent people matter in his version of Australian society, 9News, 6 September 2018]

Yet another Morrison Australia Day argument shot down

This is part of Prime Minister Scott Morrison's weak argument for not changing the
 current date of the national holiday known as Australia Day, which has been something of a movable feast since inception.

Newcastle Herald, 4 October 2018:

"You don't pretend your birthday was on a different day," Prime Minister Scott Morrison passionately reasoned with Sam Armytage on Sunrise last week.

9News, 25 September 2018:

"You can't pretend your birthday isn't your birthday," he said.

"We have a lot more to be proud about than not being proud about. It's a great day to celebrate Australia.

"Australia Day is Australia Day."

It was inevitable that he would be called out on this assertion.

In Qld, Queens Birthday is now in October, used to be in June, but it's actually in April.     Alex McDonnel‏ Oct 3

And what does he think those born on 29th Feb do each year? 

Jacqueline Kane‏  Oct 3

We pretend Jesus was born on 25 December. Hands Off Aunty‏  Oct 3

Morrison is a bit like me. My mouth works before my brain. But then I am not pretending to be prime minister like he is. Dude69‏  Oct 2

BACKGROUND

The Northern Star, 4 October 2018:

BYRON Shire Council's decision to change the date of their Australia Day event from January 26 to the evening before in 2019 has been praised by the National Congress of Australia's First Peoples (Congress).

The decision led to considerable criticism by some, and the Prime Minister Scott Morrison stripped council of its right to hold citizenship ceremonies altogether.

But the congress thanked Byron Shire Council "for its sensitivity toward the feelings by many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander citizens who are uncomfortable about the celebration of Australia Day on 26 January each year”.

The congress is the peak representative body for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and members include almost 9000 individuals and 180 organisations from around the country.

In a letter to council dated September 25 CEO Gary Oliver said the move was "an important milestone”.

"It is the local government level that is showing the most leadership on this issue and we urge you to hold firm despite the considerable criticism of your decision on this matter.

"For many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, Australia Day represents oppression and dispossession.....

Scientists, traditional owners & community call on NSW Premier Berejiklian to withdraw the Water NSW Amendment (Warragamba Dam) Bill 2018 from the NSW Parliament, and that plans to raise Warragamba Dam be taken off the table immediately

Water NSW Amendment Bill 2018 - Proposed Inundation of the Blue Mountains National Park by clarencegirl on Scribd