The Untouchables - Left Lobbyists Part 2

Lobbyist Clive Brown whose integrity is admired by Carpenter

The Desert Rat's next takes the microscope to former Left Faction and Labor Party lobbyist Clive Brown, the former Minister for State Development in the Gallop Government and MP for Bassendean.

Alan Carpenter (preaching from the Moral High-Ground) told Parliament in an answer to a question from Greens MP Giz Watson, that Clive Brown was not a lobbyist; he was employed by the Geraldton Iron Ore Alliance (GIOA) and didn't need to be on the Lobbyists Register.

Clive Brown was employed by the GIOA shortly after he left Parliament and his Ministerial position as a consultant and was later made Chairman of the Alliance lobbying group.

Read on and see what you think! Alan Carpenter certainly takes us mere mortals for idiots.

First the Desert Rat would like to say that he is not aware of the Corruption and Crime Commission investigating any of the activities of lobbyists associated with or formerly associated with the Jim McGinty controlled Left Faction of the ALP.

Shortly after retiring from Parliament in 2005 Clive Brown was hired by BHP Billiton as a lobbyist (the euphemisn "consultant" was used). Clive Brown had earlier appointed Mark Ritter (a lawyer with links to the and ALP's Left Faction) to inquire into the deaths at BHP's HBI plant in Port Hedland in June 2004. In November 2004, three months before Clive Brown retired Mark Ritter's report was completed and tabled in Parliament.

The Desert Rat understands that Clive Brown's appointment as a consultant / lobbyist to BHP was approved by Alan Carpenter. The Desert Rat thinks that taking up an appointment with BHP was a breach of propriety - it was not proper to seek or accept such an appointment so soon after retiring where he could use confidential information.

Entrepreneur Andrew Forrest was not amused that Brown was now working for BHP, he told the Sydney Morning Herald that it was highly improper. As the recent Minister for Mines, he was aware of all of the Fortescue Metals Group's (FMG) plans and now fresh from the Ministerial position he was working for Forrest's competitor. There was the sensitive issue of FMG's access to BHP's private railway as well.

About six months after retirement Clive Brown was employed as a lobbyist by Griffin Coal. When retiring, he complained to Rebecca Carmody of ABC Stateline that he was "burned out" and that was why he was leaving Parliament.

Brown was a very ordinary Minister for State Development but certainly better than Fran Logan the current Minister for State Development also (fortuitously) from the Left Faction.

His claims to fame are taking the credit for opening-up the iron ore province in the Murchison. When the big problem arose which Clive Brown could not handle or fix, such as environmental problems, road access problems and the proposed Murchison Radio Telescope Array, help was called in. The Desert Rat has heard from industry sources that Julian Grill (and possibly Brian Burke) were called in to do the heavy lifting to solve these problems, to remove the brick walls Brown hit and could not handle and get the show moving again.

The irony is, that if Grill and Burke had been around from the beginning, the rail and port delays for the Murchison producers would have been sorted out years ago. As well as contacts and entrees, which most lobbyists trade on, Grill and Burkes main asset was their problem solving skills - creating win-win situations.

The other claim to fame is the $25 billion sale of North West Shelf LNG gas to China. This contract was a major cock-up where the Desert Rat doesn't believe Clive Brown discharged his duty to the State as Minister for State Development. His job was to ensure the State got full value for the gas. It is now accepted (except by those involved) that the gas was sold for less than half the price they should have got at a time when LNG was in keen world demand.

The deal was a major long-term sellout of Australia's resources. The gas is pegged at the equivalent of $25 a barrel of oil, about $US100 below the current world price!

To quote Alan Carpenter's defense of Clive Brown the lobbyist in Parliament he said:

"Once a person leaves political life - and I intend to one day - you're a free citizen."

Why isn't that rule applied to Julian Grill and Brian Burke?

Despite the ongoing Corruption and Crime Commission Grill - Burke witch hunt; all of whose finding to date have all been discredited, neither have been shown to have been involved in any misconduct.

In the ALP these days there is one rule for the Left Faction and another for the Centre - Right faction members.

And, by the way, Clive Brown is not a lobbyist - Alan Carpenter said so.!

The Untouchables - Left Lobbyists Part 1

Scrutinising Megan Anwyl - an Untouchable?

The Desert Rat thought it may be illuminating to look at the activities of political lobbyists who were former members of the Socialist Left faction of the Labor Party and former MP's.

Why haven't any of these lobbyists beeen pursued or put under the scrutiny by the Crime and Corruption Commmission. Why have only the centre and right politicians come under scruting - some of it malicious.

Are Left faction apparatchiks off-limits; protected species who have political immunity from scrutiny?

Megan Anwyl who had the ignominy of being the only ALP MP to ever lose the safe State ALP held seat of Kalgoorlie since federation. Anwyl was the only Labor member to lose her seat when Geoff Gallop led the ALP to victory in 2001. She went south when everyone else was heading north.

Anwyl would have lost the seat four years earlier if it wasn't for Julian Grill taking over and re-jigging her election advertising campaign which she didn't realise was badly damaging her prospects.

She has since hung around Perth hoping for Left Faction endorsement for a safe seat, but she had a snowflakes hope in hell, as the Left Faction campaign managers and apparatchik's involved in her failed 2001 campaign found her impossible to work with.

Anwyl coundn't even get a sinicure appointment from a Left Minister. It was left to Centre Faction's Transport Minister Allanah McTiernan to come to her rescue and provide a board position on the Esperance Port Authority (EPA).

Anwyl showed no interest in keeping the Kalgoorlie to Esperance railway line open when it was under threat of closure by Westrail and which was vital to the viability of the Esperance Port. That was left to Julian Grill, Mark Nevill and Graeme Campbell to secure the future of the rail link during its threatened closure.

The Desert Rat recalls the antipathy she had to the mining industry when a Member of Parliament. A Damascene conversion seems to have taken place since her defeat, as the mining and exploration now puts the butter and jam on her EPA bread.

At the Esperance Port Authority, Megan Anwyl was on the Board before during and after the lead carbonate poisoning of the town and it population. All the males Board members have either left the Board or have not been reappointed - but the precious Ms Anwyl continues. She was there before and during the negotiations to ship lead carbonate from Magellan's Wiluna mine through the Port of Esperance.

Anwyl seem untouchable at the Esperance Port Authority when it comes to accepting her share of the blame for the poisoning. Why on earth did Allanah McTiernam reappointed her? Does Allanah think the Left have treated her unfairly?

Since getting dumped from her Kalgoorlie seat by her electors, Ms Anwyl has plied her trade as a political lobbyist, first with the Labor Party aligned lobby group Hawker Brittian and now out on her own. Why would she leave a group so well connected to the ALP and who are literally "raking it in" under Labor Governments all over Australia - away from the scrutinising eye of the CCC? Was she dumped?

The Desert Rat is aware she had a sinecure with the BHP Billiton's Ravensthorpe Nickel Mine Project early in her wilderness period. They actually complained about the lack of progress they were making with the Gallop Government. The Desert Rat's informant referred them to Julian Grill - unintendedly starting his demand as a lobbyist. Julian Grill achieved in a few months what Anwyl didn't make progress on in nine months. The Desert Rat would like to examine the Esperance Port Authority Board minutes to find out if Megan Anwyl disclosed any lobbying conflicts of interest while on the EPA Board.

The Desert Rat asks the question: Why should any lobbyist be on a Government Board that has dealings with the lobbyists clients?

Her new clients are iron ore hopeful who recently engaged her to chair the North West Iron Ore Alliance and Skywest Ltd. She has been flying from Perth to Esperance each month for five or more years at the taxpayers expense overseaing the the EPA pollute the town with lead. It's not surprising she has Skywest as her client.

Let's hope she has learnt a little bit about the basic physical chemistry of lead in recent times.

If Jim McGinty's Corruption and Crime Commission had been even-handed in its politicking it would have examined the activities of more lobbyists than just Julian Grill and Brian Burke.

The Desert Rat is waiting for a post from CEO Mike Silverstone (through a third party!) justifying his his strange activities.

McGinty's truth-in-sentencing - the Spin and Reality

Attorney General erodes public confidence in the justice system

When introducing the "Truth-in-Sentencing" legislation into State Parliament in 2002, Labor Attorney General Jim McGinty said:

"The end result will be a more understandable and workable sentencing regime, which will increase community confidence in the sentencing process."

That was the spin. The "real" truth is the legislation shows McGinty was not only deceptive about this legislation, but also grossly incompetent as well. Far from McGinty's claim above, the legislation is confusing, unnecessarily complex, grossly misleading and down-right incompetent.

The real aim of this legislation was to reduce the rate of imprisonment, which seems to have been missed by former the Liberal Shadow Attorney General Sue Walker who handled the Bill.

More from McGinty during the debate:

"...the Government is currently progressing a range of reforms in the adult justice arena aimed at reducing the rate of imprisonment in Western Australia, known as the reducing imprisonment strategy."

The sham was there for all to see. The impression McGinty gave is that serious offenders would spend more time in gaol. Offenders would not automatically have their sentence cut by one-third and that they would, when released, continue on parole for the "remainder" of the original sentence.

After reading the legislation and debate, the Desert Rat can only conclude that Sue Walker and some others involved with the debate were very naive. They had the wool pulled over their eyes by McGinty. Why do they behave like underlings and hold this court jester in awe? They must really think Jim McGinty really is the Emperor of Western Australia.

Like Macavity the Mystery Cat, Attorney General Jim McGinty is hiding, and nowhere to be seen on this issue. He has gutlessly avoided any public comment on his embarrassing "Truth in Sentencing" fiasco - and offered no defence! He was uncontactable.

Read what McGinty said in the debate and try to separate the reality from the spin?

" ... the concept of truth in sentencing is enshrined in the two Bills. The current system of providing an automatic one-third remission of sentences is to be removed. Likewise, the current two-tiered parole eligibility date formula, which is often difficult to interpret and understand, will be removed. In their place will be a system whereby offenders will be under sanction for the whole of the sentence imposed by a court. For some offenders this will mean serving their whole sentence in prison. For others, parole will be a consideration, and if released from custody, the offender will be subject to a range of conditions for the remainder of his or her sentence."

What was a bad idea in the beginning has just got progressively worse. Even the title is redolent of McGinty spin, "truth-in-sentencing" - very different from reality where sentences for abominable crimes are now automatically cut by one-third.

The result is that more criminals, murderers and rapists are spending less time in gaol.

McGinty's clean-out of travel funds?

Patriot Jim's walk on the wild side

Well the Desert Rat was very surprised to hear that Jim McGinty has been walking the Kokoda Trail in New Guinea.

Surely he wasn't paying homage to Australian Diggers as he has typically shown an ambivalence even antipathy to our armed forces - like many from the Left.

Was he was looking at how best to run a third world health system, to prepare us for the worst? The Desert Rat thought he would be looking west, to his mentor on health administration Robert Mugabe, as Kalgoorlie MLA Matt Birney wryly observed in one parliamentary debate.

Perhaps he went there to campaign against the mining group that plans to develop a mine in the area? (see cartoon)

Well the Desert Rat's guess is that Jim McGinty was spending the remainder of his parliamentary imprest travel account before the State election. About $20 000 a year is given to WA State MP's to travel overseas to further their knowledge for the benefit of Western Australians. What was in it for us?

Did McGinty travel at the recommendation of Kokoda Trail aficionado Brigadier Mike "Children Overboard" Silverstone the CEO of the Corruption and Crime Commission? Did our self-proclaimed Emperor of Western Australia complete the Kokoda trek in a chair carried by Fuzzy-Wuzzy angels?

Will McGinty be vacating his Fremantle seat soon after the election, for son-in-law Tim Kucera if the takeover of the CFMEU fails?

Well, the Desert Rat would like to know where the money for the trip came from? Was it from us taxpayers? Why did Jim McGinty go three months before an election when both his major portfolios are in crisis - a pressing financial decision related to cleaning out his free travel account?

Perhaps a question in parliament or some probing by a media hack may be in order, to tweak the Attorney's probably chafed googlies. The response will probably have nothing to do with the question, but will certainly have a word the Left abhor and one that will surprise his army of press corp - patriotism!

Carpenter squats on the Moral High Ground - Hey You Get off my Cloud

How does it feel, to be on your own.

The irony of double standards was not lost on the Desert Rat when Premier Alan Carpenter sneered at Catholic Archbishop Barry Hickey, lecturing him about how "it's incumbent upon people in higher office to respond quickly and appropriately" to important issues.

Carpenter has never had much liking for the Catholic Church or patience for anything involving the Christian religion, so his opportunistic grasp for the moral high ground at Hickey's expense, is not surprising.

To look at Carpenter's own performance, the Desert Rat can say he is alarmed at how few Aboriginal males have been prosecuted for sexual assaulting children in Western Australian communities. Yes, it does take costly police resources and yes, it does and would take a lot of time for Jim McGinty's underfunded DDP to prosecute the dozens if not hundreds of cases being avoided.

The Desert Rat believes the main reason there has been so few prosecutions is, the political consequences, particularly the Kimberley and Pilbara electorates, where the ALP relies heavily on the Aboriginal vote to hold seats. The Carpenter Government can't afford to put large Aboriginal communities offside and lose or split the Aboriginal vote. Carpenter has been going through the motions and occasionally making the right noises, but has essentially been sheilding the ALP and hiding on this issue.

The Desert Rat was expecting to see a number of charges laid against some Aboriginal community members - some, known to him, but nothing has eventuated except an "understanding of the difficult situation".

Contrast Alan Carpenter and the ALP's pathetic performance in Aboriginal affairs with that of the churches in the remote areas of Western Australia. Even the church apologists are starting to see the reality of the unfairly discredited churches' contributions - instead of acting as a cheer squad to those who view Indigenous affairs through pink-tinted glasses.

Aboriginal literacy was decimated by Alan Carpenter's incompetence during his term as Minister for Education. He has failed to get the Department of Aboriginal Affairs to function, his crowning achievement was to change its name. It is still starved of funds (the Minister Michelle Roberts is from the wrong faction) and ALP policy is rudderless.

Alan Carpenter sat on the Dawn Casey Report into the Department of Indigenous Affairs for 6 months, before he released it under coercion from FOI applications. Twelve months on, still no action, no change, no ideas.

Carpenter ignored Lt-General Sanderson's advice but has no plan or even a suggestion of a sense of direction himself. Carpenter was initially in denial of the generic problems in Halls Creek, Kalumburu and Oombulguri - one wonders by the administrative response, if he is still really "in denial".

He lavishly rebuilt two schools in his own electorate (Melville and Willagee) which meant dilapidated remote schools such as Fitzroy Crossing District High had to wait 7 years longer despite being the school in the worst condition in the state.

Alan Carpenter is a pretender, a squatter on the high moral ground; enveloped by an ideas vacuum, peering down his nose at mere mortals who are not up to his "moral and ethical" standards.

Is Left Faction control of the CFMEU Jim McGinty's "Jewel in the Crown"?

Turf Wars and Hidden Paws.

The Desert Rat smells an odious rodent in the current campaign to remove Kevin Reynolds (the Incumbent) as secretary of the CFMEU.

The Desert Rat is aware of the close personal relationship between Darren Kavenagh (the Pretender) and Dave Kelly the secretary of the Miscellaneous Workers' Union. The "Miscos" are the biggest Left union and the power base of Jim "the Hidden Paw" McGinty in the ALP.

Kevin Reynolds and the CFMEU have been the only union that hasn't disowned Brian Burke during the Smiths Beach Inquiry hysteria which has successfully purged Burke's influence within the ALP. Dave Kelly who is close to Jim McGinty, has been a prominent public critic of Kevin Reynolds and his role and involvement in the ALP. The Desert Rat suspects this is only because of Reynolds links with Burke.

Tim Kucera is McGinty's son-in-law, and was the legal officer for the CFMEU for 5 years. He left some months ago after a disagreement with an organiser. Reynolds always stuck by Tim Kucera despite his father-in-law's distaste for and antipathy towards Reynolds. Tim Kucera then went to work for legal firm Slater and Gordon who were the lawyers retained by the CFMEU.

Recently Slater and Gordon advised their staff (because of the conflict of interest) not to have any brief with Darren Kavenagh. They possibly became aware that Tim Kucera and Darren Kavanagh were close friends and were in regular contact.

Was Tim Kucera suspected of giving free legal advice to Darren Kavenagh?

Slater and Gordon must have become aware of some contact because Tim Kucera gave one them a months notice. The Desert Rat understands that Slater and Gordon then wanted Kucera to cease work immediately and gave him one month's pay in lieu.

Yesterday at the Supreme Court, Tim Kucera appeared, now working for Darren Kavenagh's lawyers. Tim Kucera was the briefing solicitor Phillip Laskaris, a Fremantle lawyers and diving buddy of Jim McGinty.

In case the punters don't know, Phillip Laskarus* was the go-between (le messenger) between Burke and McGinty in the "the good old days".

The spoils here are significant. If Darren Kavenagh were successful, Tim Kucera would be the legal officer of the CFMEU, there would be a purge of organisers and the executive of the CFMEU. The Left would effectively gain control of the CFMEU votes on the State Executive of the ALP strengthening Jim McGinty's vice-like grip over the political apparatus in Western Australia.

The icing on the cake would be that the remaining union support that Burke enjoys would be removed, isolating him further.

It is the view of the Desert Rat that there is no one in the Right or Centre of the ALP that has the ability and skill to take on this Left power block.

Is this just a Desert Rat's conspiracy theory?

* One of Phillip Laskaris's present jobs is a Director of Windimurra Vanadium the company John Bowler and Julian Grill were instrumental in getting reopened after its purchase and immediate shutdown by Swiss mining giant Xstrata. Both were politically castrated for this bit of civic duty. At least the Windimurra employees appreciate the jobs created.

Symptoms of Cognitive Dissonance: the CCC and McGinty

Self-deception by McGinty and the CCC?

The Desert Rat recently came across an interesting read, a book "Mistakes were made, but not by me." by C Tavris and E Aronson. The book explores "cognitive dissonance" - a condition where there is tension within the minds of people who refuse to accept what simply has to be true.

Despite the mountain of evidence in the Smiths Beach Inquiry that nothing untoward or illegal was done by any of the parties investigated, both Attorney General Jim McGinty and the Corruption and Crime Commission are in denial of the facts. The CCC have had about ten consecutive hidings recently in the Magistrates Court, also by independent public sector inquiries and by the Parliamentary Inspector Malcolm McCusker.

The Desert Rat remembers when we once had something called the scientific method, where theories were tested by the facts, now the CCC and other groups seem to have theories and mightily strive to fit the facts to them, ignoring those that don't quite work and reinterpreting them if needed.

The staff at the CCC involved in the Smiths Beach Inquiry believe themselves to be good people pursuing villains, yet they know they have got the Smiths Beach Inquiry badly wrong and unfairly destroyed the reputations of many people. These two psychological attitudes are inconsistent and cause dissonance. The perpetrators resolve it by deciding that what they have done is not that bad and will twist their view of their behaviour until it reconciles with their view of themselves. "They deserved it anyway".

There will never be any admission of error by the CCC or McGinty; the dissonance involved will see to that. They will pursue every minor potential charge to convince themselves they are good people.

The recent case of Sydney Archbishop George Pell is an example. In his mind, he refused to accept the overwhelming evidence before him about a sexual assault by a priest. Pell wrote to victim Anthony Jones and said the claims of indecent abuse against Jones by Fr Terrance Goodall could not be substantiated.

The same day he signed another letter to another complainant against Fr Goodall, that said there were no other complaints against Fr Goodall! You could see Pell on TV a bit bewildered by his behaviour - as if he was saying "How could this have happened?"

Church investigators had upheld the claims of religious teacher Anthony Jones , "without qualification" and recommended a second case of sexual assault against another boy by Goodall - be sustained.

Fr Goodall had admitted to police that it was an assault and not consensual and apologised in writing to the victim as the Desert Rat understands the events.

Pell appears to have ignored all the facts and said the complaint was unsubstantiated! It's an example of cognitive dissonance, not necessarily a deliberate lie.

Our own Andrew Mallard case has strong elements of cognitive dissonance when the behaviour of the police is examined and perhaps that of the prosecutor. Malcolm McCusker QC for the defence lawyer for Mallard failed to convince Judge Len Roberts-Smith in the WA Court of Criminal Appeal of the fatally flawed case - McCusker had to then go to the High Court to get justice for Mallard.

Perhaps Commissioner General Roberts-Smith is wondering how he got it wrong?

CCC gets third hiding in Mike Allen case.

Mike Allen Innocent of CCC charges

The Desert Rat is not surprised that the Corruption and Crime Commission has suffered another embarrassing loss to Mike Allen following on from its political witch hunt (known as the Smith's Beach Inquiry) which was designed to put effective lobbyists and Centre-Right ALP powerbrokers Julian Grill and Brian Burke out of action.

The latest fiasco was the finding of Magistrate Michelle Pontifex that cleared public servant Mike Allen of giving false testimony in the CCC public hearings. The CCC hearing raised the matter of Smith's Beach, but those called before the Star Chamber are not advised about what the public grilling is going to be about. They therefore, can't refresh their memories by reviewing documents and emails - because, in many cases they have been seized months before by the CCC. In the Frewer case some questions in the public hearings were based on information the CCC knew was a lie - but lies Frewer had to assume were true.

They witnesses at CCC hearings have to rely on memory. Given that it has been disclosed that Brian Burke made 40 000 phone calls and emails a year, who could be expected to remember all the detail - especially when unprepared.

Mr Allen, who was awarded $14 717 costs, said it was the third time it had been demonstrated that his "dealings with Messrs Burke and Grill were nothing untoward, nothing improper".. Mr Allen was exhonorated by Parliamentary Inspector Malcolm McCusker; by a Public Sector Management Inquiry and has now been cleared by a magistrate. Mr Allen should also get $45 000 reimbursement from the State Government for legal costs.

The Desert Rat admires Mr Allen for having guts and taking the financial risk to confront the bullying, incompetent but powerful CCC.

Undeterred by the failures, CCC CEO Mike "Children Overboard" Silverstone came out of 12 months "hiding" on Wednesday and said the acquittal would not affect the false testimony charges* against Julian Grill and David McKenzie. How brazen is Silverstone. If his testimony to the Senate Inquiry in the Children Overboard scandal received this level of scrutiny he would still be tied up in Senate hearings and Court processes!

Having all the substantive findings relating to Smith's Beach already discredited, Mike Silverstone and his other Dad's Army has-beens are desperate to taint the characters of people wrongly defamed in the Smith's Beach Inquiry by these charges.

Why do the CCC bother? Who has the financial and legal resources to take on the CCC for defamation action? It appears the CCC thought that their victims in the Smiths Beach inquiry would be too intimidated to fight their massive resources. A defamation action is much more legally adventurous.

* To prove false testimony charges, the CCC has to establish "intent" to give false testimony. An honest mistake would not result in a conviction. McGinty was on record the other night, saying he was not surprised the Allen charges failed! That is because intent is difficult to prove.

Hospital Emergency Department wait times blow out by 30%

Again, no comment from McGinty

Macavity (the mystery cat) McGinty's not there! There was no comment or explanation from spineless State Health Minister McGinty on Federal Health Minister Nicola Roxon's statement criticising the State Government saying the performance of WA's Hospitals had fallen behind the national average. Macavity McGinty was up some back alley - no where to be seen or heard.

Nicola Roxon's comments were in the national "State of our Public Hospitals Report".

Labor's Federal Health Minister said that WA's hospital emergency departments (ED's) waiting times have blown out and that WA had fallen behind the national average and waiting times in ED's had blown out by 30% over last year. Not surprising, when McGinty has failed to adequately staff ED's and his answer to crowding inside ED's, is to have ambulances and patients waiting in the street - "ambulance ramping" as it is euphemistically known.

Comment on the bad news was left to Dr Peter Flett the Acting Director General of Health who said the State government would soon be launching and education campaign! No mention about solutions. It appears Macavity McGinty has run out of ideas and only finds the courage to comment to the media when there is good news.