POLITICAL PARTIES – AUSTRALIA

Put stop to Senate defectors

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Original article by Joe Kelly, Angelica Snowden, Rachel Baxendale
The Australian – Page: 1 & 6 : 15-Feb-23

Centre for Public Integrity chair Anthony Whealy says federal parliament should pursue reforms to address the issue of senators who quit their political party but remain in the upper house. He contends that when electors vote for a party’s candidate in the Senate they are registering a vote for that party, so the "will of the people should prevail". Former Greens senator Lidia Thorpe has joined a growing list of upper house members who have switched political allegiances in the last decade. Former attorney-­general George Brandis has described Thorpe’s decision to become an independent as a "cynical and egotistical act" and a "blatant insult" to people who had voted for the Greens rather than Thorpe.

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THE CENTRE FOR PUBLIC INTEGRITY, AUSTRALIAN GREENS

‘Hand back your seat’, says Greens candidate who lost to Thorpe

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Original article by David Crowe
The Age – Page: Online : 8-Feb-23

Barrister and human rights activist Julian Burnside lost the Greens’ 2020 preselection race for the Senate seat that was ultimately won by Lidia Thorpe. Her decision to quit the Greens and become an independent has prompted Burnside to call for her to vacate her seat, arguing that it belongs to the party rather than Thorpe, as voters had backed the Greens and not her. David Risstrom was also a candidate for preselection in 2020; he says the process was fair and Greens members should accept it.

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AUSTRALIAN GREENS

Liberal Party vows to adopt more sensitive language on China

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Original article by Matthew Knott, Eryk Bagshaw
The Age – Page: Online : 23-Dec-22

The review into the Liberal Party’s defeat in the May federal election found that the swing against it was significantly higher in electorates which have high concentrations of voters of Chinese ancestry. The review stated that party representatives need to be sensitive to the genuine concerns of the Chinese community and to ensure the language that they use cannot be misinterpreted as insensitive. The release of the review came as Foreign Minister Penny Wong returned from her quick visit to Beijing, with her visit being the first by an Australian foreign minister in four years.

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LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA

Nats upset by watchdog threat to grants fund

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Original article by Sarah Ison
The Australian – Page: 7 : 4-Oct-22

Federal Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus has suggested that the proposed National Anti-Corruption Commission could be given the power to investigate the targeting of seats through grant programs. However, Nationals leader David Littleproud says such programs are a mechanism for seeing that regional areas get their fair share of funding, and that they should not come under the remit of the NACC. Former Nationals leader Barnaby Joyce says it does not view ‘pork barrelling’ as corruption but as a way of taking care of regional towns. Meanwhile, the Coalition has called for a high-ranking judge to make the final decision on whether NACC hearings are held in public.

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AUSTRALIA. ATTORNEY-GENERAL’S DEPT, NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA

Heat on Joyce as Coalition reshuffles

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Original article by Greg Brown, Max Maddison
The Australian – Page: 1 & 5 : 30-May-22

Peter Dutton is expected to be endorsed as the Liberal Party of Australia’s new leader at a partyroom meeting on Monday, with Sussan Ley tipped to become deputy leader. Meanwhile, the National Party will hold a post-election leadership spill on Monday, with David Littleproud and Darren Chester set to run against incumbent Barnaby Joyce. Former Nationals leader Michael McCormack has ruled himself out of contention, and he says Joyce’s actions during the election campaign contributed to the Coalition’s defeat. The Coalition is likely to make significant changes to its frontbench team in opposition.

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LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA

Albanese on course for at least six years in power

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Original article by David Crowe
Brisbane Times – Page: Online : 30-May-22

Labor has officially won 75 seats at the 21 May election and appears set to gain the additional seat that is needed to form majority government. The policy agenda of new Prime Minister Anthony Albanese suggests that he expects at least two terms in office, and his stated goal is to go to the 2025 federal election having delivered on his election pledges. Meanwhile, Labor could win even more seats from the Liberals if it governs with competence and care. However, negotiating with Greens leader Adam Bandt will be the biggest challenge for Albanese.

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AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIAN GREENS

United Australia Party’s $80m-plus war chest sparks call to limit election spending

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Original article by Christopher Knaus
The Guardian Australia – Page: Online : 23-Feb-22

The Centre for Public Integrity has outlined a range of proposed measures aimed at removing the influence of money in federal politics. Amongst other things, it has proposed capping donations to political parties, reducing the disclosure threshold for campaign donations to $1,000 and strengthening the Australian Electoral Commission’s powers to enforce donation laws. The Centre’s reform blueprint follows the United Australia Party’s recent revelation that its campaign budget for the upcoming federal election will exceed the $80m it spent on the 2019 poll.

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CENTRE FOR PUBLIC INTEGRITY, UNITED AUSTRALIA PARTY

Gas companies made almost $1m in donations to Labor and Liberals

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Original article by Royce Kurmelovs
The Guardian Australia – Page: Online : 2-Feb-22

Analysis of the Australian Electoral Commission’s political donation records show that fossil fuel producers and their lobby groups donated a combined $959,115 to the nation’s three largest political parties in 2020-21. The analysis by 350.org shows that the Liberal Party received $506,810 in total, ahead of Labor ($392,354) and the National Party ($59,991). Woodside Petroleum topped the list of donors, contributing a combined $232,250 to the coffers of the Liberal and Labor parties; it was followed by the Minerals Council of Australia, which donated $193,943 in total to the three political parties. The Greens do not accept donations from fossil fuel companies.

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LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, AUSTRALIAN ELECTORAL COMMISSION, 350.ORG

Labor exposed by $20m handout

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Original article by Alice Workman
The Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 1-Sep-21

Transport and tourism operator SeaLink received more than $20m worth of JobKeeper payments in total. This includes some $11.9m in 2020-21, when the company booked a profit of $37.8m and its revenue topped $1bn for the first time. SeaLink CEO Clint Feuerherdt is the husband of Labor senator Marielle Smith, which has attracted criticism amongst some members of the party’s ranks. One Labor MP has noted that the party would be "screaming the place down" if a Liberal politician’s partner had received JobKeeper payments under these circumstances.

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AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, SEALINK TRAVEL GROUP LIMITED – ASX SLK

Joyce’s backers query childcare funds boost

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Original article by Tom McIlroy
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 5 : 23-Jun-21

A combined meeting of Liberal and National MPs on 22 June is believed to have seen heated debate on the federal government’s proposed $1.7 billion funding boost for childcare services. National MPs George Christensen and Matt Canavan are said to have argued for bigger tax breaks and welfare payments for families, claiming this would encourage stay-at-home parenting; both Christensen and Joyce backed Barnaby Joyce in his leadership challenge against ousted leader Michael McCormack on 21 June. Christensen is said to have told the meeting that the package amounts to an "outsourcing" of parental responsibilities, while Liberal MPs Jane Hume and Katie Allen were among those to speak in favour of the funding boost.

CORPORATES
LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA