Friday 29th of March 2024

magic isn't what it used to be, robin...

batrobinbatrobin

Even by Scott Morrison’s standards, it has been an extraordinary performance.

His “I don’t hold an inquiry, mate” is making his “I don’t hold a hose, mate” look good.

On Wednesday the Prime Minister doubled down on his refusal to allow any sort of inquiry into what his Attorney-General did or did not do in 1988, closing off the opportunity for a credible investigation to clear Christian Porter’s name of an allegation that otherwise will not go away.

Mr Morrison’s reason – that an incomplete NSW police criminal inquiry into the matter had been closed – does not make sense, either politically or ethically.

Repeatedly and rather mindlessly repeating “rule of law” and “prima facie” doesn’t solve his or Mr Porter’s problems.

The absurdity of the Prime Minister’s claim that civilisation as we know it would come to an end if there was an inquiry was quickly exposed on Twitter.

The great and good and ordinary folk alike have trotted out example after example of how inquiries beyond police criminal investigations take place in the real world.

Coming on top of the issues raised by Brittany Higgins, Scott Morrison’s intransigence does the image of government no favours.

(And while Ms Higgins’ matter is different from that facing the Attorney-General, it is hard not to notice that Mr Morrison called for inquiry after inquiry after inquiry over those allegations until he came up with something that had credibility. No, another job for his Mr Gaetjens wouldn’t do.)

As Mr Morrison has said nothing about his 1988 inquiry ban that holds up to scrutiny, we’re left to wonder whether it’s the old choice between incompetence or a conspiracy – or politics.

The political rule book on inquiries was read on Yes, Minister four decades ago.

“A basic rule of government is never look into anything you don’t have to, and never set up an inquiry unless you know in advance what its findings will be.”

That makes more sense than mouthing “rule of law” and “prima facie”.

 

Read more:

https://thenewdaily.com.au/news/2021/03/11/michael-pascoe-standards-politicians/

 

 

what about half-price inquiries into sexual abuse?....

half a pilot!

“Half-price airfares to save tourism” headlined the Australian Financial Review, playing its role in a classic Morrison government media management show.

A more accurate rendering would be “Half-price airfares a classic half-arsed Morrison stunt”.

This one has it all – the pre-announcement drop for newspapers dutifully taken at face value, the Scott Morrison photo op in a plane, a bevy of senior politicians trotted out for sundry platitudes, the Prime Minister running away before he could be asked any embarrassing questions, and blanket media coverage.

Too bad the headline act, the old-fashioned paper aeroplane ticket waved about by the Prime Minister, is a poorly researched policy that looks suspiciously like it had been thrown together in a hurry. (See previous mention of avoiding embarrassing questions.)

For example, half-price fares to Broome and Uluru in their peak season? Good luck finding accommodation.

And if you’re the sort of person only lured into going there by a cheap fare, lots and lots of luck finding affordable accommodation.

Ditto tropical Queensland’s dive boat operators – if the potential customers need a half-price ticket to go, they’re not prime prospects for the several hundred dollars required to start your engines.

This has been painted as being all about replacing locked-out foreign tourists with interstate travellers.

You know what is by far the biggest destination for foreign tourists? Sydney. Nothing.

Tasmania gets a look in on a couple of fronts. That’s Tasmania that ran out of hire cars over Christmas, that does nicely as an “overseas” destination for Australians unable to fly over any other seas.

And Victorians need help to fly to the Gold and Sunshine coasts once the winter winds blow? No, they don’t.

Just as Josh Frydenberg listened to a crying Solly Lew about JobKeeper, it looks like Scott Morrison was mainly listening to Qantas CEO Alan Joyce about this package.

It is overwhelmingly about the big business of airlines, not the drivers and owners of tourist coaches, or the crews and owners of charter boats and certainly not what’s left of the travel agency industry.

There’s also a giant fudge being perpetuated about the economic impact of our shutdown of international tourism.

While select pockets of our domestic tourism industry are heavily dependent on foreigners, our tourism ledger overall is arguably richer as long as domestic borders stay open – and all the cheap airfares in the world don’t matter if the borders close again.

In a normal year, more Australians go overseas, go for longer and spend more than the foreigners who come here for a short stay.

The Thursday media show of the Prime Minister, the Deputy Prime Minister, the Treasurer and the Tourism Minister – basically anyone who wasn’t in hospital or on leave ­– wouldn’t want to get into that sort of confusing detail.

What it means though is the opposite of this latest stunt.

Genuine help needs to be targeted, not the scattergun attempt to flood the area.

In 2019, a record 9.5 million foreigners arrived here for a short stay, 47 per cent of them citing “holiday” as their main reason for coming. Also in 2019, 11.3 million Australians came home from a short trip, 57 per cent of them for a holiday, median stay 14 days. We ran a tourism deficit.

The pent-up spending power of those millions of Australians who can’t use their passports is an important part of our current consumption surge.

It’s playing a role in the housing bubble, in the surge in motor vehicle sales, caravan sales through the roof and caravan parks being full, even (anecdotally) a boom in the framing business – instead of skiing in Austria or catching shows on Broadway, we’ve been buying art.

And given the chance of state borders being open plus some confidence that they will remain open, the spare money and our love of travel will have us flying and driving right around this country without the need for half-price airfares.

So it’s the usual question: Was Thursday’s photo op for the hastily conceived, half-arsed half-price airfares stunt a conspiracy or a stuff up?

...

The eligible regions and the funding they can score have already been decided. The biggest single bite goes to Tasmania ­– $13.5 million, 27 per cent of the total pot for little Tassy, which is actually doing rather well.

Tasmania has been a focal point for Morrison government pork barrelling, whether it has been Peter Dutton flying at great expense to announce a grant that hadn’t been awarded yet, or using the corrupt Community Development Grant scheme to reward the state for swinging  Liberal Party at the last election.

Bemusingly, there’s also $1.5 million for the NSW North Coast. Memo Scott, Byron Bay and all points in that vague direction need help keeping holiday home buyers out, not encouraging more.

There’s plenty of room for both political conspiracy and stuff-ups in a “Stunt” Morrison photo op – but not for questions about not holding an inquiry.

 

Read more:

https://thenewdaily.com.au/news/2021/03/12/michael-pascoe-half-arsed-airfares-stunt/

clear recollections of relevant discussions...

A longtime friend of the woman who alleged she was raped by the attorney general, Christian Porter, as a teenager has said he had “clear recollections of relevant discussions” of the alleged incident with Porter, from at least 1992.

Macquarie Bank managing director James Hooke released a statement on Friday afternoon as someone who has known Porter’s accuser, and Porter, for the past 30 years.

Hooke said the woman, who he considered to be a “very dear friend”, and he had “relevant discussions” about the event from “mid-1988 until her death”. Hooke also recollects speaking with Porter about the allegations from 1992 onwards.

Porter has vigorously denied all the allegations against him as “never happening”.

In a written statement, Hooke said:

Mine is a just one set of recollections and I am aware of the fallibility of human memory, however unintentional,” he said in a written statement.

That said, I have what I consider to be clear recollections of relevant discussions I had with [the woman] over the years from mid-1988 until her death.

I also have what I consider to be clear recollections of relevant discussions I had with Christian Porter from April 1992 and through the mid-1990s.

 

 

Read more:

https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/live/2021/mar/12/australia-news-live-morrison-defends-tourism-package-wa-election-campaign-enters-final-day?

 

So what are those recollections?...

at the other case...

Defence Minister Linda Reynolds has retracted a comment calling alleged rape victim Brittany Higgins a "lying cow" and apologised again for making the remark.

Key points:

  • Senator Reynolds made the comment in her office on the day Ms Higgins went public with her allegations
  • Ms Higgins says she has accepted the apology from Senator Reynolds
  • She says any money received as part of the settlement will go to an organisation that provides support and counselling

Senator Reynolds made the remark after Ms Higgins, a former staffer, went public with her allegation that a colleague had raped her in the Minister's office in 2019.

She made the comment in front of staff in her office but in a statement today said "she did not mean it in the sense it may have been understood".

"Given that the comment was made public, which I never intended, I also want to retract it and unreservedly apologise to Brittany Higgins and acknowledge the hurt and distress it caused to her."

Ms Higgins responded to the announcement, saying she was pleased the comment had been withdrawn and she had accepted the Minister's apology.

She also alluded to damages being paid in her settlement with the Senator.

"This has been an immensely challenging period for me and I wish to reiterate that the only reason I have chosen to come forward is to help others," she said.

"Finally, any monies I have received from the Minister as part of the settlement of my claim against her (over and above my legal costs) will be paid in full to an organisation that provides counselling and support to survivors of sexual assault and abuse in the Canberra area.

"These funds will assist them in this important work."

Last Thursday, lawyers representing Ms Higgins sent a letter to the Senator demanding a public apology for the comment and that she withdraw it immediately.

 

Read more:

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-03-12/linda-reynolds-retracts-lying-cow-comment-brittany-higgins/13242902