Will Tasmania set the standard with Australia’s best donations disclosure regime for local government candidates? The indications from the government are not promising. Here is what you need to know.
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Comment: The $22,000 ‘Aird loophole’ lives on as Tasmania baulks at donations transparency Read More
The eleven guests who ponied up for a $2000-per-head dinner at the up-market Henry Jones Art Hotel on Hobart’s waterfront were there for a cause: to raise funds for the 2009 Legislative Council re-election campaign of then state treasurer Mike Aird. It was a fundraising dinner that illustrated how loopholes in Tasmania’s electoral law could […]
Unexplained: government business blocks release of information about mining debt write-off Read More
A Tasmanian government-owned business has blocked the release of documents detailing why it wrote off a debt of almost $2.5 million owed to it by a mining company chaired by former Labor premier Paul Lennon.
Gutwein defends exclusion of Tasmanian Legislative Council from donations disclosure laws Read More
Premier Peter Gutwein has defended his government’s plan to exempt candidates for the Tasmanian upper house from having to disclose campaign donations, prompting criticism from a public integrity advocate and opposition parties.
Pokies losses hit $180 million since Gutwein became Tasmanian Premier Read More
More than $180 million has been lost on Tasmanian poker machines since Peter Gutwein became Premier in January 2020, according to data from the Tasmanian Liquor and Gaming Commission.
Tasmanian Labor and Liberal parties refuse to reveal agreements with industry groups Read More
The Tasmanian Labor and Liberal parties have refused to reveal or discuss which vested interests they have signed agreements with other than the Tasmanian Hospitality Association, the lobby group for pubs and clubs. It has prompted calls for both major parties to disclose to voters before the May 1 state election all deals they have […]
Comment: Gutwein’s election rationale evaporates with Ogilvie’s move to Liberals Read More
The Liberal Party’s preselection of former Labor and independent MP Madeleine Ogilvie will undermine Premier Peter Gutwein’s sole rationale for calling an early Tasmanian election.
Gutwein government refuses to release PR advice on energy agreement with Morrison Read More
The Gutwein Government has refused to release documents showing the internal public relations advice it received before the December 2020 signing of an agreement with the federal government on major energy projects including the Marinus Link. At issue are four documents requested by Tasmanian Inquirer under Right to Information laws, including emails between ministerial advisers […]
Ombudsman rejects Gutwein Government secrecy bid over departmental briefs Read More
Tasmania’s Ombudsman has rejected a bid by the Tasmanian Government to hide briefing notes for a newly appointed minister from public view.
Gutwein directed Hydro Tasmania to enter into a loss-making deal, utility says Read More
Two of Tasmania’s publicly-owned power utilities have revealed they could lose tens of millions of dollars on power purchase agreements with wind farm owners.
is a Hobart-based author, researcher, editor and freelance journalist. He is the Editor of CoalWire, a weekly bulletin on global coal industry developments for the US-based non-profit group Global Energy Monitor. His freelance journalism has been published in a wide range of news outlets from the British Medical Journal to the US-based PR Watch.