Tag: Gillard

Presumed guilty …

In a democracy, you’re entitled to the presumption of innocence,” Senator Conroy told Channel 9.

Reports the Sydney Morning Herald

Well not in Julia Gillard’s democracy.

FAIR WORK ACT 2009 – SECT 361

Reason for action to be presumed unless proved otherwise

(1)  If:

(a)  in an application in relation to a contravention of this Part, it is alleged that a person took, or is taking, action for a particular reason or with a particular intent; and

(b)  taking that action for that reason or with that intent would constitute a contravention of this Part;

it is presumed, in proceedings arising from the application, that the action was, or is being, taken for that reason or with that intent, unless the person proves otherwise.

In plainer English this means the employer is guilty of the complaint levelled by the employee unless he can prove otherwise – a reverse onus of proof. Ms. Gillard is the author of this act. Perhaps Mr. Conroy should ask Nicola the First Law Officer Roxon to explain that to him … she might have worked it out by now.

Cinderella and her Slipper …

24 November 2011 and Chris Kenny wrote …

The dramatic deal to change Speakers in Canberra today ensures a political year riven by crisis, ends that way.
Don’t get me wrong, you can expect plenty in the gallery to hail this as a political masterstroke by Julia Gillard. The gallery often echoes Labor’s spin.
But at this early stage let me suggest some alternative perspectives and looming difficulties. 

This elevates to the Speaker’s chair a man who has so dismayed his Liberal colleagues (and not on any matters of high policy) that even with a hung Parliament they were moving to disendorse him. Peter Slipper is a man successive Liberal leaders have had trouble handling. Many of his, shall we say, difficulties, are now likely to see the light of day. It won’t be pleasant for him, or for the Prime Minister, who now “owns” Mr Slipper and will have to defend him.

Read it all here.

Just five months later and we wait for Julia to declare her confidence in our Peter just as she has for the teflon Thompson. By contrast her government was quick to stand Commodore Bruce Kafer aside over the Skype Affair (and subsequently very slow to release the report that cleared him).

Slipper deserves proper process and his accuser James Ashby has a blot on his copy book that will hearten the labour moral contortionists.

Meanwhile he should stand aside.

Update: This afternoon Mr. Slipper stood aside.