POLITICIANS – AUSTRALIA

Australians give their views on Tony Abbott & Bill Shorten

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Original article by Roy Morgan Research
Morgan Poll Update – Page: Online : 30-Jul-15

A recent Morgan Poll showed that Prime Minister Tony Abbott has a rating of 42 per cent as the "Better PM", compared with a 41 per cent rating for Opposition Leader Bill Shorten. Special qualitative and quantitative research conducted by Roy Morgan Research has examined Australians’ views on why they prefer Abbott or Shorten as PM, as well as the reasons why they either approve or disapprove of each leaders’ performance.

CORPORATES
MORGAN POLL, ROY MORGAN RESEARCH LIMITED, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

Hockey hit with costs on Fairfax case

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Original article by Marianna Papadakis, Katie Walsh
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 23-Jul-15

Treasurer Joe Hockey faces a huge legal bill after the Federal Court ordered Fairfax Media to pay just 15 per cent of his legal costs in a defamation lawsuit. Hockey was awarded $A200,000 in damages over tweets and newspaper advertising posters that were deemed to be defamatory. However, it is estimated that Hockey’s total legal costs in defending the case could be around $A300,000. Hockey failed to prove that published newspaper articles relating to the tweets and posters were defamatory.

CORPORATES
FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA, ACA LAWYERS PTY LTD, UNIVERSITY OF SYDNEY, GRIFFITH UNIVERSITY

Shorten warned to stop dodging questions

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Original article by Ewin Hannan
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 4 : 10-Jul-15

Federal Opposition Leader Bill Shorten fronted the Royal Commission Into Trade Union Governance & Corruption for a second day on 9 July 2015. Shorten was questioned about Thiess John Holland’s payment of $A300,000 to the Australian Workers’ Union during his tenure as national secretary. He told the commission that he could not recollect discussing the deal, and rejected suggestions that the union had issued fake invoices to the builder in return for the payments.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIA. ROYAL COMMISSION INTO TRADE UNION GOVERNANCE AND CORRUPTION, AUSTRALIAN WORKERS’ UNION-FEDERATION OF INDUSTRIAL, MANUFACTURING AND ENGINEERING EMPLOYEES, THIESS JOHN HOLLAND, ACI, HUNTSMAN CHEMICAL COMPANY AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, CHIQUITA MUSHROOMS PTY LTD

Hockey wins $200,000 in Fairfax case

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Original article by Marianna Papadakis, Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 1-Jul-15

Fairfax Media has been ordered to pay $A200,000 in damages to Federal Treasurer Joe Hockey in his defamation case against the newspaper publisher. The damages payout comprises $A120,000 arising from the publication of newspaper posters saying "Treasurer for sale", plus $A80,000 for several tweets with a similar message. Justice Richard White ruled that the posters and tweets were defamatory, although the newspaper articles to which they referred did not defame Hockey.

CORPORATES
FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, NORTH SYDNEY FORUM

Living in a $5m house, Hockey’s ‘affordable’ claim jars

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Original article by Phillip Coorey, Su-Lin Tan, Michael Bleby
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 4 : 10-Jun-15

Federal Treasurer Joe Hockey has been criticised for saying that people who want to buy their first home should start by getting a highly-paid job. He has also dismissed claims that residential property in Sydney has become unaffordable, arguing that if this were true people would not be buying homes. Australian Council of Social Service CEO Cassandra Goldie and Opposition Leader Bill Shorten are among those who have criticised Hockey.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, AUSTRALIAN COUNCIL OF SOCIAL SERVICE, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIAN BUREAU OF STATISTICS

Bid to clean up ‘feral’ Senate

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Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 5 : 20-Mar-15

Liberal Party of Australia MP Tony Smith has urged changes to the voting system for the upper house. Smith has expressed concern that the current system can be "gamed" by independents and minor parties to secure seats in the Senate. He favours a system of optional preference voting for people who chose to vote "above-the-line" on the ballot paper, which would not result in the distribution of preferences. Australian Greens senator Lee Rhiannon has supported the reform push

CORPORATES
LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA

Hockey claim for ‘substantial’ damages in Fairfax case

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Original article by Marianna Papadakis
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 2 : 18-Mar-15

The defamation case brought by Federal Treasurer Joe Hockey against Fairfax Media continued on 17 March 2015. Hockey is being represented by Bruce McClintock, SC, who told the court that in addition to general damages his client should receive aggravated damages. McClintock argued that the three Fairfax newspapers that published the allegedly defamatory articles should be treated separately in any assessment of general damages

CORPORATES
FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, NORTH SYDNEY FORUM, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA

Clive Palmer absent from Parliament more than any other MPs

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Original article by Lisa Cox
The Age – Page: 4 : 23-Jan-15

Australian federal MP Clive Palmer attended only 17 of 33 sitting days in Parliament between 26 August and 4 December 2014. No other member of the House of Representatives was absent so often. Palmer offered a number of explanations, including the birth of his second child and his political tactics

CORPORATES
PALMER UNITED PARTY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND TRADE, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. CLEAN ENERGY FINANCE CORPORATION, AUSTRALIA. CLIMATE CHANGE AUTHORITY

Police examine fake Greens siege post

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Original article by Sarah Whyte
The Sydney Morning Herald – Page: 11 : 6-Jan-15

A Facebook post of Australian Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young has been manipulated in such a way as to discredit her as a politician. The matter is being investigated by the Australian Federal Police. Hanson-Young stated in the original message that she sympathised with the victims of the Martin Place siege in Sydney, while the fake message describes gunman Man Horan Monis as a "peace loving" individual who was wronged by a "cruel government"

CORPORATES
FACEBOOK INCORPORATED, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, AUSTRALIAN FEDERAL POLICE

Court dismisses Palmer’s attempts to thwart Citic

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Original article by Paul Garvey
The Australian – Page: 20 : 12-Dec-14

Supreme Court of Western Australia (WA) judge James Edelman has ruled in a matter that forms part of the wider and drawn-out legal battle between Chinese state enterprise Citic Pacific and the Mineralogy vehicle of federal MP Clive Palmer. The latter had sought to have declared invalid two environmental permits held by Citic for the Sino Iron joint venture in WA. This was rejected by the court, and Edelman also criticised Mineralogy for attempting to drag out the proceedings even further

CORPORATES
MINERALOGY PTY LTD, CITIC PACIFIC LIMITED, SINO IRON PTY LTD, SUPREME COURT OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA, WESTERN AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF ENVIRONMENT REGULATION