Which industries and large corporations have been lining the pockets of the major political parties in Australia in the past year?
You can find out who the big donors to Labor and the Coalition were in the last year at the website www.democracy4sale.org
I believe that until these donations are reformed, governments will continue to make decisions that favour big business over communities.
At the very least donations to political parties should be published more often as is the case in the United Kingdom, not once a year like in Australia
The Howard Liberal/National coalition government has recently abused its Senate majority by pushing through new electoral laws. Now the electoral rolls will close the day an election is called, denying hundreds of thousands of people the right to enrol or change their details. Young people and new migrants will be particularly disenfranchised. Prisoners have had their right to vote removed and the homeless will find it harder to vote with new identification requirements.
The Government and Labor will benefit from changes to the donation threshold allowing up to $10,000 to be donated in secret to a political party. This would allow a company that donates to each branch of a party to give $90,000 and avoid the current requirement to disclose.
In a speech to Parliament greens Senator Kerry Nettle said “It is a blatant attack on some of the most disadvantaged members of our community, and it is also a blatant manipulation of the electoral system by the Liberal government.”
Follow the money trail: http://www.democracy4sale.org/
Excerpt from article Where art thou, Brethren? by David Marr SMH
Related articles include:
Sect’s election attack ads billed to Liberal Party (News Corporation)
AEC Must Reopen Exclusive Brethren Investigation (ALP website)
Exclusive Brethren, Libs deny election ad deal (ABC News)
Invoices link sect to Liberals (The Age)
– excerpt from SMH article Our democracy encourages corruption and undue influence