CONSTITUTIONAL LAW – AUSTRALIA

Coalition MP on brink

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Original article by James Campbell
Herald Sun – Page: 1 & 6 : 2-Nov-18

Liberal MP Chris Crewther could be referred to the High Court over concerns that his investment in pharmaceutical company Gretals Australia may breach Section 44 of the Constitution. Gretals has received direct grants from the federal government, as well as linkage grants. Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton has also been under scrutiny over claims that his pecuniary interest in a childcare centre may breach the Constitution. The federal government would have 74 seats in the lower house if Crewther is disqualified.

CORPORATES
LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, GRETALS AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HOME AFFAIRS, HIGH COURT OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

‘I was not in breach’: Peter Dutton releases new legal advice on eligibility to be MP

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Original article by Latika Bourke
The Age – Page: Online : 24-Aug-18

Former Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton has used social media to publish legal advice which suggests that his beneficial interest in several child care centres is not in breach of the Constitution. Dutton said he was advised by former solicitor-general David Bennett that he is eligible to be in parliament, and noted that Guy Reynolds SC has also previously advised that he is not in breach of section 44 of Constitution. Bennett has also provided Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull with advice regarding section 44 in the past.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. OFFICE OF THE SOLICITOR-GENERAL, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND TRADE, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, ONE NATION PARTY

Dutton breach deepens Lib crisis

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Original article by David Crowe
The Age – Page: 1 : 21-Aug-18

Doubts have emerged about the eligibility of Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton to be in Parliament, amid speculation that he could challenge the leadership of Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull. Dutton is a beneficiary of a family trust that owns two childcare centres; they receive direct subsidies from the federal government under rules that took effect in July. The Constitution prohibits MPs from having a pecuniary interest in a government contract, and constitutional law expert Professor Anne Twomey says the question of whether Dutton would face disqualification is "borderline". A spokesperson says legal advice suggests that Dutton is not in breach of the Constitution.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HOME AFFAIRS, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, UNIVERSITY OF SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AGL ENERGY LIMITED – ASX AGL

Cloud hovers over Labor’s Aly

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Original article by Joe Kelly
The Australian – Page: 1 & 7 : 11-May-18

The dual citizenship saga continues to plague Federal Parliament, with the latest High Court ruling having raised uncertainty about the eligibility of Labor MP Anne Aly. Parliament’s citizenship registry shows that Aly applied to have her Egyptian citizenship cancelled in early May 2016, well before nominations for the federal election closed in June. However, Aly is yet to submit any documentation to prove that her Egyptian citizenship has been cancelled. Professor George Williams from the University of New South Wales has called for a referendum on the issue of dual citizenship.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, HIGH COURT OF AUSTRALIA, UNIVERSITY OF NEW SOUTH WALES, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

Labor bracing for mid-year byelections

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Original article by Tom McIlroy
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 4 : 9-May-18

The High Court will hand down its determination on whether Labor senator Katy Gallagher is eligible to sit in parliament because of her dual citizenship on 9 May. Should its decision go against her, there would be pressure on fellow Labor MPs Susan Lamb, Justine Keay and Josh Wilson and Centre Alliance MP Rebekha Sharkie to resign from parliament or be referred to the High Court. Should Lamb, Keay and Wilson resign, it is likely that by-elections would be held on the same day as the one to replace Labor MP Tim Hammond, who resigned in early May.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, CENTRE ALLIANCE, HIGH COURT OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FINANCE, NICK XENOPHON TEAM, PROFESSIONALS AUSTRALIA

‘Citizenship seven’ have Friday on their minds

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Original article by Rosie Lewis
The Australian – Page: 7 : 25-Oct-17

The High Court’s ruling on the eligibility of seven MPs and senators to be in federal parliament will be handed down on 27 October. A by-election in Barnaby Joyce’s seat of New England is slated for 2 December if the court rules that his dual citizenship at the time of the 2016 election disqualifies him from being in parliament. George Williams, the dean of law at the University of New South Wales, expects the court to disqualify at least some of the parliamentarians.

CORPORATES
HIGH COURT OF AUSTRALIA, NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, NICK XENOPHON TEAM, UNIVERSITY OF NEW SOUTH WALES

Joyce and Nash should step aside, expert warns

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Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 4 : 31-Aug-17

Constitutional law expert Professor George Williams has told the National Press Club that cabinet ministers Barnaby Joyce and Fiona Nash should step down from their portfolios until the High Court determines whether they are eligible to be in Parliament. He says there is potential for all ministerial decisions they have made since the 2016 election to be subject to a legal challenge if they are disqualified from Parliament due to dual citizenship. Williams adds that an audit of all federal MPs and senators should not be held until the court hands down its ruling.

CORPORATES
NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, HIGH COURT OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, ONE NATION PARTY, NICK XENOPHON TEAM, NATIONAL PRESS CLUB (AUSTRALIA)

Citizenship turmoil to last months

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Original article by Phillip Coorey, Mark Ludlow
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 5 : 25-Aug-17

Shadow attorney-general Mark Dreyfus says cabinet ministers Barnaby Joyce and Fiona Nash should step aside until the High Court rules on their eligibility to be in Parliament. The hearing is not scheduled to begin until 10 October, and Dreyfus argues that any ministerial decisions they make in the interim could be subject to a legal challenge if the court disqualifies them due to dual citizenship. Constitutional lawyers Anne Twomey and George Williams say the court may not necessarily rule in the Government’s favour in the cases of Joyce, Nash and Matt Canavan.

CORPORATES
HIGH COURT OF AUSTRALIA, COURT OF DISPUTED RETURNS, NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, ADANI MINING PTY LTD, NORTHERN AUSTRALIA INFRASTRUCTURE FACILITY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. ATTORNEY-GENERAL’S DEPT, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, ONE NATION PARTY, NICK XENOPHON TEAM, GREAT BRITAIN. HOME OFFICE

Kiwi Joyce puts doubt on majority

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Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 4 : 15-Aug-17

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull is confident that the High Court will rule that National Party leader Barnaby Joyce is eligible to be in Parliament. The Deputy Prime Minister is the latest federal MP to become embroiled in the dual citizenship saga, following revelations that he is be a New Zealand citizen because his father was born there. The Opposition has called for Joyce to stand aside until his status is determined by the High Court, while it has also questioned the legitimacy of the Government. A by-election in Joyce’s seat could result in the loss of the Government’s one-seat majority.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, HIGH COURT OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, ONE NATION PARTY, AUSTRALIA. ATTORNEY-GENERAL’S DEPT, UNIVERSITY OF NEW SOUTH WALES, NEW ZEALAND. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

MP fiasco extends to bloodlines

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Original article by Rosie Lewis
The Australian – Page: 1 & 6 : 28-Jul-17

The issue of federal politicians with dual citizenship continues to attract scrutiny, with 21 lower house MPs having confirmed that a parent or grandparent was born overseas. There would be major implications for the Government if any Coalition MPs were found to have foreign citizenship by descent, given its one-seat majority in the lower house. Meanwhile, One Nation senator Malcolm Roberts has confirmed that he was a British dual national when elected to Parliament in July 2016. He had taken action to renounce his British citizenship, but official documentation was not completed until December.

CORPORATES
ONE NATION PARTY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND TRADE, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, HIGH COURT OF AUSTRALIA, NEW ZEALAND. DEPT OF INTERNAL AFFAIRS, AUSTRALIAN NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, AUSTRALIAN GREENS