Editorial: What conflict of interest?
What conflict of interest?
Rejecting Labor claims that his minister for resources and energy, Senator Warwick Parer's, ownership of $2 million worth of shares in a coal mine amounts to a conflict of interest, Prime Minister John Howard declared there was nothing wrong with somebody who has been "successful" in business being a minister. Howard added that many ministers and Coalition MPs have also been "successful" in business, have "created" wealth and "created" employment. Heaven forbid, he thundered, if federal parliament was composed of former trade unionists "as Labor would prefer".
Warwick Parer's "success" is hard to deny, especially in the period after he became the minister responsible for coal mining. Parer, directly and indirectly through a family trust, owns shares in Queensland Coal Mine Management and a subsidiary. Parer's 16 shares, about 1.4% of the stock, earned his family trust $400,000 in his first two years as a minister.
While Parer has been minister, QCMM has prospered. The value of its assets skyrocketed almost 1000% in 1995-96, to $153 million. In the financial year after his elevation, the mine's exports jumped by 320,000 tonnes — worth a cool $20 million. Bucking the industry trend, QCMM's share of Queensland coal exports jumped from 2.9% in 1995-96 to 3.4% in 1996-97.
This boost followed meetings with two companies in Japan which are also shareholders in QCMM's deposit. On October 2, 1996, Parer discussed "new investment opportunities" in Australia with the companies. The companies soon after decided to buy extra coal from their jointly owned mine. A spokesperson for Parer told the March 20 Age that the company executives recognised Parer not simply as the resources minister but as a "shareholder in a joint project".
To both his parliamentary friends and foes, revealed the Age's Kenneth Davidson on March 19, Parer is known as the "minister for coal". On December 10, he told business leaders that his priority was to promote coal exports for as long as possible, until uranium exports would replace coal as Australia's main energy export.
In cahoots with mining industry bosses, Parer and Howard ran a scare campaign to convince the public that tens of thousands of jobs and Australia's economy would be harmed if Australia's greenhouse gas emissions were cut. Australia's intransigence at the Kyoto global warming summit in December helped torpedo meaningful global greenhouse gas cuts, to the overwhelming relief of the world fossil fuel industry.
Under Parer's aegis, the Australian government has increasingly gone cold on a move toward renewable energy, advocated mining in national parks, deregulated export controls and approved the Jabiluka uranium mine as part of its open-slather uranium policy. The Coalition's attacks on native title are also motivated by a desire remove all obstacles to mining.
But there is logic in Howard's spirited defence that Parer, as a "successful" capitalist, does not have a conflict of interest. After all, Howard's government is dedicated to the welfare of the richest corporations and individuals. It represents those interests and rules for them. Why should it be so surprising that, individually, many ministers and MPs also benefit? Where's the conflict of interest?
Family trusts like Warwick Parers' are a favourite scam by which the rich minimise their tax. They allows income to be split and shared around family members in such a way as not to attract much income tax. At least 10 of Howard's ministers, and dozens of other MPs in both major parties, take part in a similar rorts. Yet, as Australia's wealthy happily refuse to pay their fair share of tax, the government is talking about introducing a GST that will hit those least able to afford it hardest, and slashing welfare.
If the government succeeds in destroying native title, it will be the big mining and pastoral companies that gain the most. As many as 29 MPs, mostly on the government's side, will benefit directly. And if the government achieves its goal of smashing the trade unions, this country's ruling rich, including all the "successful" businesspeople in federal parliament, will be laughing all the way to the bank.
Parer, Howard, Reith, Costello, Herron et al daily take decisions that benefit the rich and powerful, inside and outside parliament. There is not a conflict of interest. That's their job.