Townsville Greens
  • About
  • Get Involved
  • Events
  • Contact
The future is Green

The Donations Debate

19/9/2016

0 Comments

 
Donations to politicians and political parties still seem to be on the radar, and that’s a good thing. The truth is that donations do affect the political process, they do damage our democracy and they do sway policy and political decisions.
 
What's the evidence for this... let’s start by looking at the international experience – recently released court documents from an investigation into Wisconsin governor Scott Walker don’t just reveal the indiscretions of one person, they reveal how widespread the influence of corporate cash is… on politicians, lobbyists and judges.
 
There is the incredibly complex story of political corruption in Nauru as revealed recently on 7.30 – and the dance that continues between senior members of government, money being provided an Australian company and the Australian government’s complex relationship with the nation as a result of our asylum seeker policy. The democratic fallout affects the citizens of both Nauru and Australia and the root cause of this problem is money and a lack of transparency.
 
It would be naïve to believe that these issues are isolated ones.
Picture
Cartoon by Ron Tandberg
We only need look at our own political history for signs of problems. Donations disclosures are available online.
 
In 2014-15 (a non-election year when they were not in government) the ALP received $153, 000 in donations from a combination of Clubs NSW, the Australian Hotels Association, and Woolworths (the nation’s biggest owners of poker machines).
 
In 2011 (an election year when the ALP was in government) the same group donated $156,600 while simultaneously launching a multi-million dollar ad campaign focusing on marginal seats held by Labor.
 
At the same time the Liberal party received (from the same donors) – in 2011 - $121,000 and in 2014-15 no reported donations. It would be fair to say that the Abbott opposition was already opposing proposed changes vigorously before the clubs and hotels joined the debate because it saw relative political advantage.
 
Over the same periods The Greens received no donations from any of these groups.

Currently, The Greens are one of the few parties with a prominent pokies harm reduction policy while neither of the major parties are currently showing any interest in addressing the issue.
 
In 2011 there was a lot of heat on pubs and clubs in relation to poker machine regulation. In 2016 there is none despite ongoing issues with gambling addiction and ongoing community concerns about the pervasiveness of poker machines. Did money and a massive political scare campaign buy a political outcome that suited donors who have a lot of skin in the poker machines game? It would appear so. This is significant because perceptions are as important as reality when we are discussing public confidence in the political process.

These concerns are a likely factor in the declining confidence in democracy in Australia.
Picture
Cartoon by David Pope
Foreign donations add another layer of concern and complexity (as seen in the case of Nauru), so concerns surrounding state owned enterprises in China are both understandable and completely valid.
 
Ideally we want to see a more level playing field that gives parties, policies and ideas an equal chance of being heard. We don’t want to see voices drowned out by big money advertising campaigns, and we don’t want to amplify individuals or interest groups based solely on their financial resources rather than the quality of their argument.
 
And that is what we are currently getting.
 
A more appropriate arrangement would cap donations and election campaign expenditure, ban foreign donations, improve transparency and disclosure, as well as provide a more level playing field through more equitable public funding.
Picture
Cartoon by Alan Moir
How that might look in practice would be a great basis for the debate we are not currently having in this area.
by Mark Enders
0 Comments

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    Authors

    The Townsville Greens will publish blogs considered to be of merit. The opinions expressed are those of the Author.

    Archives

    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    August 2015

    Categories

    All
    Accountability
    Alan Moir
    Andrew Dyson
    Border Protection
    Cathy Wilcox
    Climate Change
    David Pope
    David Rowe
    Economics
    Economy
    Education
    Election
    Employment
    Energy
    Environment
    Equity
    Federal Government
    First Dog On The Moon
    Freedom Of Information
    Governance
    Health
    Housing
    Immigration
    Indigenous Affairs
    Infrastructure
    Innovation
    Jenny Brown
    Jobs
    John Shakespeare
    John Spooner
    Live Exports
    Malcolm Turnbull
    Mark Enders
    Matt Golding
    Matthew Davidson
    Michael Leunig
    Nbn
    Pat Campbell
    Principles
    Renewable Energy
    Ron Tandberg
    Safety
    Simon Letch
    Social Policy
    Technology
    The Conversation
    Townsville
    Transparency
    Water
    Wendy Tubman

    RSS Feed

Authorised by K Carra for The Greens, Brisbane - AN 2019/0299
  • About
  • Get Involved
  • Events
  • Contact