Nash accepts staffer's resignation

[grandmoon]

Abbott government minister Fiona Nash has accepted the resignation of a senior staffer embroiled in a row over the taking down of a health food ratings website.

The resignation of Alastair Furnival came just hours after the assistant health minister expressed confidence in her chief of staff.

Senator Nash had told reporters in Sydney on Friday that Mr Furnival had done a "terrific job".

Later, in a statement, the minister said she had accepted his resignation with regret and thanked him for his service.

Senator Nash has been under pressure to explain what role Mr Furnival played in the take-down of the website after just 20 hours of operation.

He retains a shareholding in the lobbying firm Australian Public Affairs, operated by his wife Tracey Cain, which represents food industry opponents of the website including Kraft and Cadbury.

Labor insists there has been a serious breach of the ministerial staff code of conduct with opposition Senate leader Penny Wong accusing Senator Nash of misleading parliament twice in three days.

[i-need-a-martini]

So does that mean that they did the wrong thing in demanding that the website be taken down?

Will the website be re-instated now?

[grandmoon]

Now will she have the intestinal fortitude to reinstate the website.

[lakeland27]

 she ought to resign her portfolio . we can't have junkfood interests guiding public health policy any more than they do already.

[i-need-a-martini]

And I don't understand how how could have allowed him to work there in the first place given his connections.

But then this is the Abbott government who feel it is OK to choose a man to review the education curriculum whos previous role included educating children about smoking and is a firm believer that multiculturalism is wrong, sex eduaction shouldn't include discussions about homosexuals and believes our schools should introduce mandatory Bible education classes...

[lakeland27]

when this government won it was like the goldrush for these lobbyists. first flight to canberra thanks.

[polksaladallie]

 I see that Munchkin's vote has paid off.

http://www.news.com.au/national/nick-minchin-gets-consulgeneral-posting-in-new-york-sparking-backlas...

[lakeland27]

no surprises there polks  

[freakiness]

---

@i-need-a-martini wrote:

So does that mean that they did the wrong thing in demanding that the website be taken down?

Will the website be re-instated now?

---

The person who has been in charge of working on it for 2 years has had it removed from her responsibilities, I read.

Perhaps he will go back to work int he family business and his wife will go to work for Nash.  Or he might be rewarded another staffer job for being a good lad and resigning.

[pct001wine]

Bumping this.

The Government thinks the matter is over, despite the obvious conflict of interest, the obvious abrogation of the PM's ministerial code of conduct (conveniently ignored by abbott, "move along folks, nothing to see here").   This case just gets murkier and murkier - there's a Cadbury connection too.

http://www.smh.com.au/national/fiona-nash-and-lobbyist-alastair-furnival-prompt-food-for-thought-201...

"Furnival's firms had done work in the alcohol industry, and that he played a  key role in the removal of funding for Australia's peak drug and alcohol  body.

And  news of his involvement in lobbying for government money for Cadbury,  which has been promised $16 million from the public purse by Prime Minister Tony  Abbott."