Back in May, Tony Abbott gave a speech celebrating the retirement of former resources minister, Ian MacFarlane from Parliament where he said:
“The member for Groom Ian MacFarlane was the resources minister who scrapped the mining tax … It was a magnificent achievement … and I hope that the sector will acknowledge and demonstrate their gratitude to him in his years of retirement from this place.”
In saying so, Abbott basically admitted that the Coalition serves the business community first and foremost. And they expect to be rewarded handsomely for it once they leave politics.
Well, Mr Abbott got his wish with Ian MacFarlane in September taking up a plum job as new chief executive of the Queensland Resources Council, Queensland’s peak mining group.
Now MacFarlane has doubled-down on the pork, taking a board appointment with Woodside Petroleum. From SBS:
Deal-hungry energy giant Woodside Petroleum has appointed former federal resources and energy minister Ian Macfarlane to its board, citing his extensive experience across the resources industry…
Woodside chairman Michael Chaney said Mr Macfarlane had more than 14 years’ experience in cabinet and shadow ministry positions.
“Mr Macfarlane is held in high regard in the Australian resources industry and brings a wealth of relevant experience to the Woodside board,” Mr Chaney said on Monday in a statement.Cash-rich Woodside is looking for acquisitions across the oil and gas space to boost its earnings pipeline, amid a prolonged slump in energy prices.
There is a long history of Australian politicians from both sides going into well-paid private sector jobs after politics – often in the very industries that they used to regulate.
But rarely has it been so blatant as under this Coalition Government.
In addition to MacFarlane, we have seen recent Trade Minister Andrew Robb take on a position at investment bank Moelis & Company selling Australian assets to wealthy Chinese under rules that he developed while in Parliament, as well as an advisory role at the Chinese Landbridge Group – the controversial owner of the Port of Darwin.
As noted by Alan Austin recently:
The rationale for generous pensions for MPs is that they can engage in public service – as Malcolm Fraser did chairing an overseas aid agency – and thus avoid the temptation of corporate payoffs…
So why do we have a conga line of former politicians having their cake and eat it too – collecting fat parliamentary pensions while also working in corporate roles in industries that they used to oversee?
