Kill Bill

[silverfaun]

 Kill bill: Anthony Albanese tried to save Julia Gillard from Stephen Conroy

STEPHEN Conroy’s draconian media laws were damaging the Gillard government so irrevoc­ably in March last year that Anthony Albanese invoked a rare parliamentary procedure that hadn’t been used for almost 40 years, to kill the bills and save Julia Gillard’s leadership.

As leader of the House, Mr Alba­nese, who was a supporter of Kevin Rudd and opposed to the media proposals, moved a motion to “discharge government business” on the remaining media bills, which permanently removed them from the agenda.

The use of the rare procedure protected the then prime minister from the humiliation of losing a vote on the controversial bills on the floor of the parliament.

Recognising the political dangers of the failing media reform bills, Mr Albanese went to Ms Gillard early on March 21 and ­the prime minister agreed to his plan to withdraw the bills and avoid a vote.

Former foreign minister Bob Carr has revealed that the “stupid” media-reform package, which included a government-appointed overseer of media ownership and press standards, was the final reason for his decis­ion to abandon Ms Gillard and shift to supporting Mr Rudd’s return as prime minister.

In his newly published diary of the time, Mr Carr said Ms Gillard hadn’t had a political success last year and the media package and the way it was adopted had “destroyed any confidence I could have in her office and instincts’’.

Mr Albanese disagreed with the substance of the media changes proposed by Senator Conroy, then the communications minister, and was trying to remove any suggestion the proposals, which were opposed by the entire media industry, many cabinet members, the opposition and the crucial crossbench independents, would be revived.

March 21 was a day of running political dramas. As Simon Crean publicly imploded at his second press conference of the day and called for a Labor leadership spill, Mr Albanese was moving in the House of Representatives that the government business of the remaining media bills, including the proposal for a media overseer, be discharged.

A government hadn’t moved to discharge a bill since the early days of the Fraser government in 1976 when laws that were never going to be pursued were permanently withdrawn

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/kill-bill-anthony-albanese-tried-to-save-julia-gill...

How Stephen Conroy was allowed to stay on the front bench even after he destroyed Julia Gillard then consequently destroyed Labor  and is still a power broker  and still looking for a front bench seat.

This debacle shows just how out of touch Labor is, they haven't addressed the deep rooted failures that brought them down and Bill is nowhere to be seen.

Is he behind the scenes (again)?  the dark places he loves so much, the place he operates in, the faceless actions of the faceless man. What's he up to?? is he trying to explode back onto the front page with "look!!! I've fixed everything".

Labor is in much more trouble than fixing the corrupted union problem. Members openly  calling the new Senator Bullock a homophobe and a traitor even before he arrives in Canberra.

[colic2bullsgirlore]

faceless men.... did somebody mention faceless men.........................

Is it strange that the media are courting "the faceless ones" to get the inside running on who will be the coalitions new

"face" in NSW

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/opinion/find-liberal-way-to-party-reform/story-e6fr...

One concern of the NSW membership is that rules have seen the party taken hostage by insiders at the expense of fresh talent and merit promotion. It is only the lobbyists, political staff, parliamentarians and party apparatchiks who have the time and inclination to study the rules that can be weighted to ensure the roulette ball lands on black each spin.

Of the 21 members of the proposed reform committee, by my rough count, seven are lobbyists, five parliamentarians, eight members of the state executive and one a political staff member. Multiple members of the committee are employed by the same lobbying company.

In too many contests, the result is known before the ballot.

Too often, the Liberal Party of NSW feels like a pillaging cabal under which the spoils go to those with privileged access to inside information and factional preferment based on a trade in favours.

The preselection for the recent Miranda by-election is merely one in a clear pattern of inferior outcomes that not only costs Liberal seats but have cost us state and federal elections.

Hint.... Which leberal member has just announced SHE will not stand for election as the new Premier of NSW?

what is this "numbers" thing that the media are all talking about this morning....sounds like a racket to me

[spotweldersfriend]

Lobbying occurs on both sides of politics,but with the Libs its a runaway horse.It should be outlawed at state and federal level.But then that would leave the IPA with little to do.