Lee Rhiannon, Greens MLC

Parliament House

Macquarie Street

SYDNEY NSW 2OOO

Ph: 9230 3551 Fax: 9230 3550

Email: lee.rhiannon@parliament.nsw.gov.au

If you would like to discuss any aspect of this report with me prior to the SDC please contact me - phone and email details above.

STAFF UPDATE

Thanks to my hard working staff. With the Greens now on about 8% in the polls inquires and requests to our office have considerably increased which has added to all our workloads. John Kaye, who has been on staff since we opened the office after the 1999 election has taken leave without pay as he is now working as the Campaign Coordinator for the State Election Campaign Committee. We miss him considerably but we are pleased that the SECC is in such good hands. Andrew Burke and Dan Cass are now both working full time. Linda Wilhelm is working on general administrative work and assisting with various projects.

ON TOUR TO REGIONAL AND RURAL NSW

The two long breaks with no parliamentary sittings since the last SDC have given me a change to visit to western NSW, the Hunter, the far south coast, and the Illawarra. These visits as always are most informative allowing me to work closely with a number of Greens and community based campaigns. Some of this work is detailed below. The trip to western NSW was undertaken with Sylvia Hale. Also thanks to all the local Greens groups that have invited me to speak. I find these meetings most useful as they help to inform me as a Greens MP what party members are thinking on a range of issues. If I have not visited your local group this year please contact our office as I am keen to visit.

HIGHLIGHTS SINCE THE LAST SDC

Cunningham by-election
I have made a number of visits to Wollongong over the past month, working closely with the Illawarra Greens, on two by-elections that they have contested. Michael Organ, the Greens candidate in the mayoral by-election won a fantastic 15% of the vote. Michael is now the Greens candidate for the by-election in federal seat of Cunningham. Michael and the campaign team are doing a fantastic job since they were thrown into the national spotlight. The Greens are seen as one of three top contenders after our strong showing in the Mayoral by-election and national polls. With the Cunningham by-election brought on by the resignation of the former Labor MP only eight months after the federal election, the ALP have angered many traditional supporters.

Issues that I have worked on and that have been well covered in the media include calls for the establishment of the Illawarra Escarpment National Park in order to stop development that is ruining the environment and in many cases poses a risk to local residents; industrial manslaughter to be legislated against so bosses can be charged when their negligent work practices results in the death of an employee; and an immediate stop work on the Sandon Point development in light of the release of Dr Hiscock's archaeological report, which has found this area to be one of the most important Aboriginal sites on the east coast.

Western NSW - urgent work for national parks
Following a visit to western NSW by Sylvia Hale and I our office has continued to highlight the need to protect the Brigalow Belt South Bioregion (BBSB) in conjunction with job creation projects. We have drawn on the work of the Western Conservation Alliance, which has produced a socio-economic report that promotes the diversification of regional economies and new sustainable industries and job creation in the BBSB. The work of the Alliance is most impressive as they have devised projects that enhance the conservation values of the region while promoting job opportunities. I have spoken twice in the House about this work and the need to halt natural gas exploration until an adequate environmental impact assessment is undertaken.

Sydney nuclear reactor project rocked by earthquake fault lines
The news that the site for a nuclear reactor proposed for Sydney sits on top of two earthquake fault lines has further underlined why this project must not go ahead. Despite this disturbing news ANSTO, the federal government's nuclear researcher, have found that the fault lines do not pose a threat. I have called for the NSW government to make an independent assessment of this report. This is necessary as the report was carried out by the proponent of the project not an independent body. I also have a private members bill that would ban the transport and storage of nuclear waste in NSW before the House.

Shooting complexes show political favouritism
The shooting fraternity in NSW continues to do very well out of the Carr government with millions of dollars earmarked for shooting complexes. In Cessnock and Narooma these complexes are meeting strong local opposition. I have visited both these areas to discuss with locals how we can stop these complexes being built. The Labor government has put tens of thousands of dollars aside for the preparation of the development applications for these projects and will inject millions of taxpayers' money into the actual projects. This money is clearly a sweetener for the gun lobby with the election looming. John Tingle, the Shooters party MP in the Legislative Council, is demonising the Greens stance on gun control. Interestingly he is highlighting our chance of having two MPs elected in 2003 as one of the main things his Party needs to stop.

Politicisation of police and corrective services
I have spoken out against the politicisation of the police and corrective services. With both major parties gearing up for a law and order election we can expect to see more of these underhand tactics. The Acting Privacy Commissioner criticised the government for releasing to the media video footage of the mother of a convicted gang rapist visiting her son in gaol.

There are proper methods of policing public safety and humiliation should not be one of them. Many MPs try and win favour with the public by being seen with police officers. Reba Maher Labor MP for Cabramatta has been widely condemned for using a photo of herself with the Police Commissioner. Premier Bob Carr is trying to boost Labor's chances in Cunningham by taking Crean and their candidate to the Wollongong police station. I have now called for the government to ban visits by MPs to police stations and sites of police operations when electoral advantage is the motive.

Greens slam Carr's "saturation advertising"
I have called for the Carr government to bring in a freeze on its advertising budget for the next six months so it does not gain an unfair advantage in the lead up to the 2003 state election. NSW Labor is at odds with it federal counterpart if it does not act. Labor's National Secretary Geoff Walsh has accused the Federal Coalition Government of using publicly paid advertising in the lead up to last year's federal election. Walsh stated that 'saturation advertising' does have a 'political impact'.

It is understood that Labor could spend up to $40 million of the NSW taxpayers' funds between now and election day. If the Premier does not bring in the freeze he will have broken another election promise. When he was opposition leader Bob Carr promised to rein in Government advertising. Eight years later and we are still waiting.
The Coalition parties also have a history of ripping off the public purse to advertise themselves. In NSW the Opposition spent over $92 million in their last year in office in today's dollars. All up major party governments are wasting a billion dollars each election cycle on propaganda to help maintain the two party system.

Bob Carr takes one small green step
The Greens congratulated the Carr government for their decision to ban the burning of native forests for electricity production. Whilst it is heartening to see the Premier respond to the massive protests against the forests for electricity plan, it is disturbing that Labor did not extend its announcement to cover other low value uses of our forests such as domestic firewood and wood chipping.

When announcing his plans to ban the burning of forests for electricity the Premier made the significant statement that native forests in NSW are logged for 'residue'. This is in complete contradiction to all previous statements by both Labor and Coalition Federal and State Governments.

For twenty years both major parties have pretended that timber operations produce 'forest residue', which is of no ecological value, and so can be justifiably fed into voracious woodchip mills, power stations or burnt to make charcoal. Premier Bob Carr let the truth out about so-called native forest 'residue' when he spoke at the Sustainable Corporation Conference held in Sydney on August 30. Bob Carr's remarkable admission destroyed the credibility of ongoing wood chipping operations in NSW.

For details on any bills (including copies of amendments or transcripts of debate) ring The Greens parliamentary office or visit the Parliament's website at http://www.parliament.nsw.gov.au

IN PARLIAMENT

The current session of parliament commenced on August 27 and will run through to the end of November or early December. The government's parliamentary performance has been lacklustre, with few positive initiatives coming through in their legislative program.

Save Callan Park Bill
Following extensive work with the Friends of Callan Park our team has finalised the Greens private members Save Callan Park Bill. As this Bill was not scheduled for debate we were pleased that we were able to win the support of enough MPs to bring the Bill on for debate.

I have made the second reading speech for this Bill and we anticipate that debate will resume at the end of October. This Bill will prevent any sell-off of Callan Park, which would prevent the 1,200 unit residential development Labor plans for the area. Greens deputy mayor at Leichhardt, Jamie Parker, and members of Friends of Callan Park are working hard to win support of Upper House MPs for the Bill. The future of Callan Park is seen as crucial to the outcome in the Port Jackson seat in the coming state election. The strength of public opposition to Labor's develop Callan Park position is reflected in the massive support for the petition organised by the Friends of Callan Park. To date 18,000 people have signed a statement opposing the planned sell-off and development.

Obeid survives expulsion but must face Ethics Committee
After intense debate in the Legislative Council the Minister for Fisheries, Mr Eddie Obeid, will have to explain his business declarations to a parliamentary committee on privilege and ethics. On a number of occasions I have urged the Minister to provide a report from an independent auditor to explain his complex web of shelf companies and other interests. The irony of the Obeid scandal is that at the same time the Minister was trying to justify why he did not remember to put all his financial interest on his pecuniary return a massive fish kill was occurring at Lake Cattai on the mid north coast.

The Minister's poor showing in his fisheries portfolio was highlighted when claimed he knew northing about the fish kill disaster. The next day I reported to parliament that two people has contacted our office to say that they had phoned and emailed the Minister to report this fish kill. I then asked the Minister if he was going to blame his staff for not informing him about the fish kill "like your pecuniary interest problems were the fault of your accountants".

Front parties blocked at coming state election
The NSW government has announced that it will amend the electoral act to ensure front parties do not exploit the ballot as they did in 1999. On this issue I have received advice from Brian Walters, Senior Counsel, that the present electoral legislation allows preferences to be garnered contrary to the intention of the Act. Mr Walters' opinion reveals the mechanism front parties can use to deceive voters and funnel preferences.

The advice has been passed on to the NSW government. At this stage we understand that the government will not move to amend this aspect of the legislation. As it appears that there are no front parties running in this election this loophole will probably not be exploited but it could be in future state elections. I have also received information about the establishment of front parties from the staffer of an Upper House member. This information has been referred to ICAC.

MEDIA SUMMARY - June 14 to August 9 2002

By Dan Cass, Adviser - dan.cass@parliament.nsw.gov.au 02 9230 3551

Lee and Sylvia's visit out to the Central West of NSW generated a considerable amount of TV, radio and print but this is all outside the usual Parliament media monitoring, so it is not detailed here.

The Cunningham by-election saw very solid coverage in the local and statewide media from workers rights across to environmental and indigenous issues.

Newspaper coverage was higher than usual and commercial radio lower.

The Greens are now in a position where we can get issue onto the agenda more than before and force the Government to act. Our office was able to put the issue of micro-party electoral rorts onto the media agenda and because of this the Government has committed to act. Bob Carr was also forced to answer questions about the Government's hundred million dollar advertising budgets and even promise to try to save $15 million over the next year - if only we could influence how it is spent…

 

Issue	Outlet
TV
Sandon Point (two occasions)	Prime News
Eddie Obeid	Channel 7 News
Eddie Obeid	ABC TV News
Eddie Obeid	Channel 9 News
PRINT
Greens State election campaign	Australian Financial Review
University fees	The Australian
Shooting range	Newcastle Herald
Cunningham by-election: Escarpment National Park	Sydney Morning Herald
Cunningham by-election: Industrial Manslaughter	Illawarra Mercury
Cunningham by-election: Industrial Manslaughter	Daily Telegraph
Cunningham by-election: Sandon Point	Illawarra Mercury
Cunningham by-election: Sandon Point	Sydney Morning Herald
Micro party electoral rorts	Illawarra Mercury
Micro party electoral rorts	Daily Telegraph
Eddie Obeid allegations	Sydney Morning Herald
Eddie Obeid allegations	Newcastle Herald
Lucas Heights fault lines	Sydney Morning Herald
Corrective services	Illawarra Mercury
Shooting range	Illawarra Mercury
Government advertising	Illawarra Mercury
Government advertising	Sydney Morning Herald
Kurnell sand mining	Sydney Morning Herald
Callan Park	Daily Telegraph
Greens State election campaign	Sydney Morning Herald
RADIO
Eddie Obeid, Illawarra Escarpment, Wollongong issues, Micro party electoral rorts.	2UE - News 2UE - Steve Price ABC North Coast News ABC Radio Wollongong - News 2BL - News Nova 96.9 - News 2GB - Drivetime 2WS - News

SPOKE AT THE FOLLOWING EVENTS

· Monthly meeting of the Randwick Botany Greens, Randwick
· Monthly meeting of the Blue Mts Greens, Leura
· Monthly meeting of the Macarthur Greens, Campbelltown
· Monthly meeting of the Northern Beaches Greens, Narrabeen
· Launch of Illawarra Greens Mayoral candidate
· Inaugural meeting of the Rockdale Greens, Rockdale
· Public Meeting for Rockdale by-election, Rockdale
· Meeting with Greens members in Orange
· Meeting with teachers in Dubbo
· National conference of the Australian Greens, Brisbane
· Policy State Delegates Council Greens, Maitland
· Media Skills Workshop for Victorian Greens candidates, Melbourne
· Western Sydney Youth Conference, Richmond
· Parliamentary Education and Community Relations section - Young Women's Leadership Seminar
· The National Maternity Action Plan, Launch, Parliament House
· Jacques Lamrock Residents Action Group rally, Bondi
· Narooma Tilba Residents Action Group meeting to protest shooting complex, Narooma
· Peace Yearbook 2002 Launch, Teachers Club, Sydney
· Greens Skill Sharing Workshop, Erskineville
· Lecture Medical Students about the Greens, UNSW, Kensington

SOME EVENTS ATTENDED

· New Theatre - MUA presentation of 'Bringing Home Harry' - Life &Times of Harry Bridges, Newtown
· Pyrmont Community Group briefing, Pyrmont
· Council on Intellectual Disability briefing, Parliament House Sydney
· No Sydney nuclear reactor rally, Sydney
· Dinner with environmentalists in Dubbo
· Meeting with the General Secretary of the Uniting Church Synod, Parliament House Sydney
· 'Politics and Popular Culture' - Wild Young Greens Forum, Sydney
· Briefing with the Directors of the Nature Conservation Council and the Total Environment Centre
· Toast to Labor Day, Lidcombe
· Rally for Worker Safety, protest at Royal Commission into Construction Industry, Sydney
· Briefing from Cessnock residents opposing shooting complex, Cessnock
· Briefing from Paxton residents opposing Duncan Hardie's sanctuary, Paxton
· Save Callan Park rally, Rozelle
· Briefing from Collex representatives about the Clyde Waste Transfer Station, Parliament House Sydney
· Briefing from Mustafa Barghouthi from the Health, Development, Information and Policy Institute, Palestine, Sydney
· Compassion Club Rally on use of cannabis for medicinal purposes, Parliament House, Sydney
· Reception to mark 100 yrs to the day since the passage of 'An Act to Extend the Parliamentary Franchise to Women', Parliament House Sydney

MEMBER OF FOLLOWING COMMITTEES, COUNCILS ETC

· Inquiry into Policing in Cabramatta (General Purpose Standing Comm - Legislative Council)
· General Purpose Standing Committee No 4 - reviewing police, industrial relations, attorney general and fair trading
· Council of University of NSW
· President of the Vegan Society
· Board of the Australian Mekong Committee, Sydney University
· Steering Committee of UNSW Ecoliving Program

CONTACT WITH OUR OFFICE

Ph 9230-3551 Fax 9230-3550
Andrew Burke - policy adviser andrew.burke@parliament.nsw.gov.au
Dan Cass - media adviser dan.cass@parliament.nsw.gov.au

If you have trouble reaching our office by phone we apologise. We endeavour to answer all phone calls within two days and all correspondence within two weeks. Our workload continues to increase so we very much appreciate the assistance we are receiving from a number of volunteers to manage the inquiries that we receive.

E-BRIEF

We produce a regular email bulletin providing information on our work in Parliament, a summary of Greens media, "what's on", and juicy bits of information. It's a great way to keep up to date on Greens events and views. To subscribe email to lee.rhiannon@parliament.nsw.gov.au with "E-Brief subscribe" as the subject.