Premier Dominic Perrottet, furious about being kept in the dark about the complete shutdown of Sydney’s rail network, instructed senior staff to urgently investigate the timeline of events that led to the debacle.

An internal dossier was provided to the Premier’s office on Tuesday, which included details of texts messages sent between ministerial staff and the rail agency in the hours leading to the decision to switch off the passenger rail network.

 

Transport Minister David Elliott came under repeated fire to explain when he was told about the transport agency’s decision to close the network, which disrupted hundreds of thousands of commuters on Monday.

Labor leader Chris Minns grilled Mr Elliott over a text message between the minister’s chief of staff and a bureaucrat before 11pm on Sunday, citing it as evidence the government had advance knowledge about the imminent shutdown.

 

Commuters endured another day of major disruptions on Tuesday as just a quarter of scheduled passenger train services operated across the city.

A senior government source said that while Mr Perrottet was confident Sydney Trains had made the appropriate decision based on safety concerns, he was incensed that he knew nothing of the looming chaos.

 

Another senior government source, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said: “Dom was pissed off that no one called him at whatever hour of the morning to let him know what faced commuters when they woke up on Monday.”

The government on Tuesday backed down from its dramatic standoff with the rail union in a bid to revive the city’s paralysed rail network, after dropping an attempt to get the industrial umpire to force workers to ditch overtime work bans and other low-level actions.

 

 

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https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/dossier-compiled-for-nsw-premier-furious-over-sydney-rail-shutdown-20220222-p59yo8.html

 

 

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I am a rail worker and turned up Monday morning for my usual shift, as did my colleagues across the rail network (“Railroaded into chaos”, February 22). We were not on strike, rather we were ready for duty. Monday’s transport fiasco was a vicious attack on workers and the public. The government cancelled the services, with no notice, in a tawdry attempt to intimidate the workforce and ascribe blame to the union. Their attempt to politicise the issue will backfire, as evidenced by the strong expressions of support I received on Monday from many affected commuters. In addition, we, the workers, are now angry and more determined than ever to pursue fair wage and conditions. Lindsay Smith, Linden 

 

 

I am amazed by the statement by Sydney Trains management that the network would have been in chaos, if reduced train services had been allowed to run on Monday. How much more chaos is there in shutting down the entire network, leaving commuters in an impossible position? Michael Blissenden, Dural

 

 

What was Scott Morrison and Dominic Perrottet’s aim in blaming the ALP and the union for the mess that has been created on NSW railways, when it is clear the NSW government caused the chaos? Could someone tell them this is not 1955, that “Reds under the bed” scare campaigns will not work on an educated voting population, and they will only win an election with good policy, not shouting. Paul Robertson, Newcastle

 

 

https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/government-is-trying-to-duck-blame-for-rail-chaos-20220222-p59yim.html

 

NSW commuters are yet to receive a satisfactory explanation as to why the rail system was shut down as they endure a third day of chaos on the state’s train network, sparked by a feud between the rail union and Sydney Trains.

NSW Opposition Leader Chris Minns said Transport Minister David Elliott has still not given full details as to what he knew, and when he knew it, prior to the rail network shutdown on Monday.

“What’s the point of having a government if the minister responsible is not even told, or does not know, what’s happening on his watch?” Mr Minns asked on Wednesday.

 

Labor’s transport spokeswoman Jo Haylen said it was “absolutely implausible that a public servant alone would shut down Sydney’s transport network” without the minister signing off on the action.

“There are giant holes in the transport minister’s story,” Ms Haylen said.

A dossier from Premier Dominic Perrottet’s office confirmed the transport minister had known about the shutdown from 10.43 pm on Sunday night, she said.

“Either the transport minister is incompetent of running his own department, or he has misled the public and the parliament about his involvement,” Ms Haylen said.

On Tuesday the government withdrew its claim against the Rail, Tram and Bus Union in the Fair Work Commission, after the union asked to see the justification for shutting down the rail network.

Trains resumed at limited capacity on the same day, and will continue at the same service through to the end of the week.

Most rail lines are reduced to running every 30 minutes, servicing all stops.

“As a minimum, the rail timetable being operated today will continue for the remainder of this week to ensure a basic level of frequency for customers who rely on our services while protected industrial action continues,” Transport for NSW said.

 

In a bid to keep peace talks moving, the government is due to meet the union later this week to discuss a new enterprise agreement.

Mr Elliott said the government withdrew its FWC claim “in the interest of transparency and goodwill”.

RTBU Secretary Alex Claassens said the withdrawal vindicated the union’s industrial position and reiterated the rail network shutdown was ordered by NSW transport officials.

Mr Claassens said the challenge now was to get the system “back up and running properly”, and pointed to Monday for a possible resumption of regular services.

“We’re fairly confident we can do that, even with our protected action in place,” he said.

– AAP

 

 

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https://thenewdaily.com.au/news/state/nsw/2022/02/23/nsw-transport-minister-pressured-trains/

 

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Senior NSW government bureaucrats were discussing the potential for a two-week shutdown of NSW's passenger train network as early as last week, documents obtained by the ABC have revealed.

Key points:

• The ABC has obtained more than 1,400 pages of documents from the Fair Work Commission
• They detail the negotiations and disagreements that preceded Monday's rail shutdown
• The Premier was seemingly blindsided by the decision, but the documents show senior public servants weren't 

 

The decision to cancel all services on Monday seemingly blindsided Premier Dominic Perrottet, who yesterday said he "should have been advised".

However, the Fair Work Commission documents show people in his government discussing the possibility of a full shutdown openly in the days before it happened.

The documents show the Rail, Tram and Bus Union (RTBU) notified the government of its plans for industrial action on February 9. It was due to run for two weeks from Monday, February 21.

In response, Sydney Trains conducted a risk assessment — finalised last Wednesday, February 16 — on what that proposed action could mean for the network.

It concluded all passenger trains would need to be shut down for two weeks.

NSW's chief economist Stephen Walters also produced modelling on what a shutdown would mean for the state on February 16.

 

READ MORE:

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-02-24/government-was-preparing-for-train-shutdown-last-week-docs-show/100857252

 

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by Michael West

 

Dominic Perrottet’s Nazi uniform prank is good news for ClubsNSW and the pokies lobby. The NSW Premier had held firm on a cashless gaming card but now is fighting for his political life. Michael West reports.

The Election looms. One organisation which will not be saddened by the travails of NSW premier Dominic Perrottet is the powerful poker machines lobby ClubsNSW.

Perrottet, now fighting for his political life in the wake of revelations he had dressed up as a Nazi for a 21st birthday party, has been the one premier in many years to stand up to the pokies lobby. He’d refused to sign an MOU (memorandum of understanding) with ClubsNSW pledging not to regulate poker machines for another term of government.

It is a bizarre testament to the power of the clubs peak body that any lobby group can force democratically elected leaders to sign a deal promising not to regulate them. Is there any other industry which achieves this? Is there any other industry which spits so much money in the direction of state coffers?

Despite the longevity of LNP rule in NSW, Perrottet’s stance on pokies – pushing for the introduction of a cashless gaming card to rein in money-laundering and rampant problem gambling in the biggest punting province, bar-none, in the world, had drawn the ire of ClubsNSW.

Edge over Labor gone?

It had lent Perrottet an electoral edge over his Labor rival Chris Minns, simply for the display of political courage; as every man, woman and their dog know the pokies lobby needs to be brought to heel. 

The Nazi get-up is great political theatre, seized gleefully as fodder by the media. But it may blow over. His apology and remorse are credible, the birthday party was 20 years ago. There is a long Anglo tradition of poking fun at Nazis. Not even Perrottet’s political adversaries are claiming he’s a serious Nazi.

Still, it won’t hurt Labor’s chances; and downtown at the Druitt Street Sydney headquarters, ClubsNSW boss Josh Landis and his troops will not be shedding one tear.

Will the debilitation of Dominic Perrottet be their reprieve? They had gone rogue as an organisation, bringing private criminal prosecutions against their adversaries such as whistleblower Troy Stolz, even after the Crime Commission task-force had found the $95 billion pokies trade at NSW clubs and pubs was a haven for criminals, money-launderers.

 

Moreover, it appears to be beyond regulation itself, untouchable, running a profitable business of Keno under the curious corporate umbrella of an employers’ association.

ClubsNSW is an organisation of employers registered under the Industrial Relations Act (NSW) that has the status of a body corporate.

It also controls the ClubKENO company that is entitled to a good-sized portion of the proceeds from this casino-like game: some $14.1m for FY22 down from $17.7m for FY21.

We know this because, despite their best efforts to hide their financial statements, our reporter Callum Foote managed to get a hard copy of the 2022 accounts before he was ejected from the annual meeting late last year.

Despite its official status, ClubsNSW sounds like and acts like a political party. It has taken lobbying to the next level of aggressive activism in pursuit of its members’ interests, which appear to be unfettered profits from gamblers in the suite of its retinue of casinos across the state.

The annual report for 2017 explains that “If clubs must campaign, we must go hard and we must win”. This despite the clear social costs of addiction and massive pokies losses. 

The current slogan on its website is “Gaming Reform – There is a Wrong Way and a Right Way”. In promoting reformtherightway.com.au Clubs is encouraging us to become agitated enough to email our local MP to oppose cashless gaming cards. Why?

Channelling the NRA

Because the state is trying to treat you like a criminal, that’s the line, indignation. it is empowering government bureaucrats to monitor your spending, it is trying to punish recreational punters by banning cash, seeking to impose costs on clubs which reduces community support and scope for clubs to fund community activities.

The impassioned cries for freedom are redolent of another famous lobby group in another land, the National Rifle Association (NRA) in the US with its crusade to protect rights and suggest citizens are under attack from the deep left or the dark state or whatever.

ClubsNSW makes it clear that cashless gaming cards are the wrong way for gaming reform, but they are less forthcoming about the right way. Apparently, regulation unsanctioned by ClubsNSW is the wrong way and the right way is not doing anything the wrong way, which is equivalent to doing nothing.

The right way, the wrong way and the Minns way

If the right way is doing nothing then that is where Labor leader Chris Minns is stuck. Well, maybe stuck doing almost nothing, or just enough to give the appearance that he might do something. According to the SMH (after months of ducking for cover on cashless gaming cards):

“NSW Labor leader Chris Minns says he is prepared to reform the state’s lucrative gambling sector but only after the impact on the industry is fully calculated, despite a poll indicating the vast majority of voters want decisive action.

To put Minns’ reluctance in context, his position is not much different to Gladys Berejiklian or any previous Labor or Liberal leaders for that matter. And he is caught to the extent that trade union clubs operate poker machines for large profits. Labor links to the sector are substantial. A board member of ClubsNSW, Dr Christina Curry, doubles as the Labor mayor of Bayside Council.

It is just that on this one big issue for NSW voters, he has looked weak versus Perrottet so the Nazi uniform scandal has come, politically, at a good time as the people of NSW consider their options for the election in March.

 

READ MORE:

https://michaelwest.com.au/dominic-perrottets-nazi-uniform-brings-tears-to-the-pokies-lobby-tears-of-joy/

 

 

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