The disappearance of BPB CEO Neil Cocks into the Department of Planning and the removal of BPB Board member Margaret Hole was acknowledged today as part of a Government campaign to remove smut, cheap jokes and innuendo from the NSW Public Sector.
NSW Premier Barry O’Farrell admitted that the Government needed crossbench support from the Upper House and, like agreements with the Shooters and Fishers to allow culling of feral animals in National Parks, an agreement with Fred Nile’s Christian Democrats will have widespread ramifications across the public sector.
“Neil had to go”, the Premier said. “He could so easily have simply used an “x” but the flagrant flaunting of the unfortunate plural was too much.”
CEO Neil Cocks had always been a problem for depaNews with a number of councils refusing to accept any publication where his name appeared prominently but Ms Hole was a risk as well. Nevertheless the names both individually and, particularly, in juxtaposition, was sufficient to distress our moral guardians in the Legislative Council and the Government.
In responding to questions Premier O’Farrell indicated that the process is really just beginning and questionable names would no longer have a place in Her Majesty’s New South Wales Government.
Prominent class-action litigants Slater and Gordon announced they will mount a class action for damages against the Government and inviting responses from others affected and targeting names such as Dick, Dolores, Fanny and John Thomas.
“This is just the start”, the Premier said. We will be clearing up innuendo in names as well as gestures is public.”
Premier O’Farrell and Mr Nile MLC demonstrate gestures no longer allowable in the public sector
Premier O’Farrell today announced an extension of the current licenced shooters programme to cull feral animals in National Parks to allow licenced shooters to cull feral demonstrators demonstrating against the Government in Macquarie Street.
“I agree with the Prime Minister’s observation about the important conservation role performed by those who chop down trees, particularly old growth forests, and shooters who take life are similarly conscious of the need to conserve it,” the Premier said.
In the deal announced between the Government and the Legislative Council crossbenchers it was recognised that demonstrations against planning reform, where members of the Legislative Council from the Shooters and Fishers Party had been prominent, would be exempted from the cull.
“We are trying to slash and burn within the public sector and demonstrations against cuts and public sector pay policy will be a priority. This is really just being more proactive and effective”, the Premier said.
Attorney-General Senator Brandis is under attack from all sides of politics for his initiative to make changes to section 18C of the Racial Discrimination Act so that it would no longer be illegal to offend, insult or humiliate on the basis of race and bigots and racists could use race to vilify and intimidate in “public debate”.
“Other Australians have the right to be bigots too”, said Senator Brandis last week. “I’m not going to sit around doing nothing while people are prevented from racially vilifying whomever they like. We’ve been too polite for too long and we have to restore rights to pompous fat white people. The pendulum has swung too far.”
But Senator Brandis has found opposition within his own ranks.
NSW Premier Barry O’Farrell last week announced “bigotry should never be sanctioned… vilification on the grounds of race or religion is always wrong and there is no place for inciting hatreds within our Australian society”, the Premier said, drawing a measured response from Senator Brandis.
Ex-President of HSU East Michael Williamson and ex Secretary Craig Thomson this morning called for an enquiry into the financial management of the Development and Environmental Professionals’ Association (depa). Both ex-union officials have been convicted of defrauding the union, in Williamson’s case by millions of dollars.
The HSU has membership fees of almost $600 a year, about 50% more than depa’s fee of $398 - a fee which has remained unchanged for 11 years.
“Members of depa are entitled to ask where the money comes from. We know it just can’t be membership fees as members of our union were paying $200 a year more and that was barely enough for us” Williamson said from the back of a police wagon.
“Officials of that union must live in abject poverty, no wonder I never see any of them at lunch.”
“How can a small union (even its friends sneer at the small number of members) have $1 million in the bank, own its own office and regularly report fully to members openly and transparently? And the membership fee never goes up. Something has to be wrong.”
Thompson suggested that the absence of an official union credit card should be treated with suspicion. “Clearly porn and prostitutes are somehow being paid with cash,” Thompson said.
Meanwhile, members of depa anticipate their individual receipt of the auditor’s statement and the union’s financial statements, as usual, in April.
