Iemma attacks his own ministers

Premier Morris Iemma has lambasted several ministers of his government, criticising them for arrogance and telling them to work harder in their positions, following the continuing fiasco over political donations.
The attack was supported by Karl Bitar, the ALP general secretary, who told ministers they would be annihilated in the polls unless they put more effort into their game.
The dressing - down will not impress ministers in the government, several of whom think the 2011 election is unwinnable and are planning to retire at that time.
Iemma also delivered an attack on journalists, saying he would not “cop any more attacks from journalists and would be hitting back.”

An MP at the meeting said Iemma was frustrated that “everything he is trying to do gets slammed.”
MPs were not impressed at being brought in during the weekend to be criticised. “It was wrong to have the general secretary and the staff there,” said an MP. “Bitar and Murray (Iemma’s Chief of Staff) were just patronising.”
Iemma’s attack on his ministers is an indication that the debacle over political donations to NSW government is starting to hurt the Premier. While his demand that his ministers work harder is well-placed, his criticism of the media is not.
The unfriendliness of the media towards Iemma and the Labor government is brought on by years of ineptitude by the Iemma government. If a Labor minster display an unwillingness to govern in the interests of the people, it is the right, and the obligation, of the media to shine a light on their practices. It ensures the government will continue to govern to the best of its ability. The media isn’t attacking Iemma because they hold a grudge. They are attacking Iemma because he isn’t doing his job.

Political donations cause headaches for Labor

There is more evidence emerging that the NSW Government has been compromised by political donations, this time with the Transport Workers Union (TWU) in the mix. Not only that, but the donations run both ways, with the NSW government donating more than $700, 000 to the TWU at the same time that the TWU donated more than $746, 000 in suspected taxpayer grants back to the Labour party.
The NSW government has been funding the TWU and its associated organisations over the past six years. The TWU received $660, 000 from the government, while $73, 000 went to Concerned Families of Australian Truckies, an organisation devoted to truck drivers’ safety. The government has denied that the funding was used inappropriately, saying they were used for safety programs.
Political donations to any current government will always compromise that government’s ability to run the state fairly and impartially. Once the government has received any donation, they may no longer be able to make a decision that might impact on the people who donated the money for fear of halting other potential donations.
Such is the modus operandi of the NSW Government. They have received donations from so many people that they will never make a decision that might hurt those people who gave the donations. Simply put, they can no longer be trusted to make impartial decisions on the running of the state, whether it concerns land development, transport, or the unions.
The announcement from Premier Morris Iemma last month that he would ban all political donations is now a mute point. With the opposition stating they would ask the NSW Auditor- General to investigate the links between the funding to the TWU and the donations to the Labor party, and the Greens calling for a royal commission into political donations, the pressure on the government will continue.

Labor criticised for political donations

The news that property developers have donated more than $4 million to the Labor Party since Frank Sartor took control of large development applications provides damning evidence that the NSW government is too influenced by political donations, rather than governing in the best interests of the people.
Research by the Greens party found the biggest property developers paid more than $1 million to the Labor party while Sartor considered approving their developments across NSW. They are calling for a royal commission into the Government's approval process and donations.
Last week Greens MP Sylvia Hale introduced a bill making it illegal for political parties to accept donations from developers. It would make it illegal for any donor to put in a development application for a year after donating to a political party.
The Liberal party have called the property donations and subsequent approvals an “appalling” conflict of interest.
This comes after Premier Morris Iemma promised last month to ban all political donations, following the ICAC’s inquiry into bribes for development applications in Wollongong City Council. Iemma said the consultations on the donation reforms would take at least six months.
The Labor party has come under increasing criticism from other NSW political parties as well as from the NSW electorate for the political donations the Labor government receives from influential organisations such as the Australian Hotels Association (AHA). The AHA has donated enormously to the NSWS Labor government, creating a conflict of interest when the government recently ruled out extended trading hours for bars and hotels.
The Wollongong against Corruption group, formed in the wake of the Wollongong Council scandal, protested outside NSW Parliament House last week, calling for an end to donations to political parties.