Misplaced Pages

Revision as of 04:29, 14 November 2012

The AWU scandal is an allegation of embezzlement of funds in the early 1990s by Bruce Wilson, an Australian union official. It has received significant media attention in Australia as the current Australian Prime Minister, Julia Gillard, was involved in a romantic relationship with Wilson at the time of the alleged fraud and provided legal assistance in the establishment of the fund at the centre of the allegations. The Australian Workers Union never brought charges against Wilson regarding the matter. Gillard has denied any wrongdoing, and Slater and Gordon, the law firm for whom Gillard was then working as a Partner, investigated Gillard's role in the affair and reported that they found no evidence of wrongdoing on her part.

Background

In 1992 the legal entity "AWU Workplace Reform Association" was established for Australian Workers Union state secretary Bruce Wilson and Ralph Blewitt, without the knowledge of the national leaders of the AWU. As part of the formal establishment process, the association was described as being formed for the purpose of "development of changes to work to achieve safe workplaces."

In 1993 Wilson arranged the purchase of a house for Ralph Blewitt. The house was part paid by funds from the "AWU Workplace Reform Association", with the balance lent by Slater & Gordon.

A police investigation in 1995 and 1996 looked into the possible misappropriation of funds through the association, and in 1996 Ian Cambridge, former national secretary of the AWU and currently a commissioner of Fair Work Australia, lodged an affidavit claiming that Wilson and Blewitt had extorted money from construction companies. A memo written in 1997 by WA police fraud squad Detective Sergeant David McAlpine stated that police suspected that the association was used by Wilson and Blewitt to allegedly fraudulently obtain over $400,000 from major construction companies. Nevertheless, after a "thorough investigation", no charges were laid, and the police decided not to take any further action.

Slater & Gordon lost the AWU account over the affair.

Allegations regarding Julia Gillard

In 1991, while she was a lawyer with the firm Slater & Gordon, Gillard was also in a romantic relationship with Bruce Wilson. Gillard provided legal assistance to help establish the AWU Workplace Reform Association. Gillard has subsequently described the intent of the association as being to assist in the re-election of union officials and as a "slush fund", which commentators have identified as being at odds with the association's stated purpose. Gillard responded by stating that she only provided legal assistance, and that she neither drafted the passage in the legal documentation describing the association's purpose, nor signed the papers. Gillard did not open a file at the law firm covering the work.

It was first publicly alleged by Phil Gude under parliamentary privilege in 1995 that Gillard may have indirectly received a financial benefit through the association, and may therefore have been a recipient of fraudulently obtained funds. In particular, it was alleged that part of her home renovations were paid for out of the fund without Gillard's knowledge, although Gillard has repeatedly denied that this occurred, and no evidence that disproves her account has been produced. The issue was raised in the Victorian state parliament by Liberal Party MPs in 1995 and 2001. It was raised again in June 2012, this time by Labor MP Robert McClelland in Federal Parliament. McClelland had been demoted some six months earlier.

In 2011 reporter Glenn Milne covered the allegations, on the website of The Australian, including a claim regarding Gillard's living arrangements with Wilson. Gillard contacted the chief executive of Milne's paper and threatened legal action over the story. The story was removed and an apology and retraction was posted in its place. Milne based part of the article on a statutory declaration by a former AWU vice president, Bob Kernohan, that had been aired by 2UE presenter, Michael Smith. ABC's television program Media Watch found that the allegation had been considered untrue by News Limited lawyers and removed from an article Milne wrote in 2007. Michael Smith left his position at 2UE over editorial differences that emerged as a result of an interview which he had recorded with Kernohan about the allegations but never aired, and Milne was dropped from his roles at The Australian and the ABC's The Insiders program.

In 2012, Nick Styant-Browne, a former partner of Slater & Gordon, alleged that Gillard was interviewed in September 1995 to determine her involvement, if any, in Wilson's alleged fraud. Gillard was unable to categorically rule out being a beneficiary of the fund, but was unable to identify any item of home renovation that she did not pay for. Styant-Browne stated that the interview was recorded and transcribed, and alleged that Gillard resigned as a result of the investigation. However, the equity partner who interviewed Gillard in 1995, Peter Gordon, found no evidence Gillard was involved in any wrongdoing, and he confirmed in 2012 that was still his opinion. Furthermore, in response to Styant-Browne's assertions, Andrew Grech, the Managing Director of Slater & Gordon, also stated that the 1995 investigation found no improper behaviour by Gillard, and said that Gillard did not resign as a result of the investigation, but instead took a leave of absence in order to campaign for a senate position, and resigned in 1996 to work for the Victorian opposition leader.

On 23 August 2012, Gillard held a long press conference where she addressed the allegations in depth, hoping to end the matter. She restated her innocence of any wrongdoing, and claimed that she was the victim of a sexist online smear campaign. Gillard confirmed her 1995 statement that her understanding of the purpose of the association was that it was a re-election fund for union officials. She also expressed regret that she had neglected to open a file on the case at Slater & Gordon.

In November 2012, The Australian reported that Ian Cambridge, (a 2012 Fair Work Australia Commissioner), claimed that he recorded in his diary on June 1996 that Wayne Hem claimed that Wilson had given him approximately $5,000 in cash and instructed him to deposit the amount into Gillard's bank account. Hem could not confirm that the account was Julia Gillard's, nor was it known where the funds originated from.

External links

• Transcript of press conference, Canberra (23 August 2012) Press Office, Prime Minister of Australia.

References

1. ^ Thomas, Hedley (18 August 2012). "Revealed: Julia Gillard lost her job after law firm's secret investigation". The Australian. Retrieved 21 August 2012.
2. ^ Thomas, Hedley (18 August 2012). "The political controversy that won't go away". The Australian. Retrieved 21 August 2012.
3. ^ Thomas, Hedley (23 August 2012). "Julia Gillard set up 'work safety' entity that was a slush fund". The Australian. Retrieved 23 August 2012. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
4. ^ Hannan, Ewin (3 September 2011). "8am call that put Julia Gillard's old news on front page". The Australian. Retrieved 22 August 2012.
5. Freebairn, Pip (22 August 2012). "Federal judge named in Gillard affair". Australian Financial Review. Retrieved 22 August 2012.
6. ^ Milne, Glenn (11 November 2007). "Gillard's stunning confession". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 21 August 2012.
7. Thomas, Hedley (4 August 2012). "Cops wanted Julia Gillard's ex, Bruce Wilson, charged". The Australian. Retrieved 21 August 2012.
8. ^ Kelly, Paul (22 August 2012). "Gillard's conduct and judgment in public spotlight". The Australian. Retrieved 22 August 2012.
9. Valent, Dani (18 May 2007). "Our Julia". The Age. Melbourne: Fairfax. Retrieved 26 June 2010.
10. ^ Packham, Ben (23 August 2012). "Julia Gillard breaks silence on union fund". The Australian. Retrieved 23 August 2012.
11. Packham, Ben. (22 August 2012) "Coalition targets Julia Gillard's conduct as a lawyer". The Australian. Retrieved 28 August 2012.
12. ^ O'Brien, Natalie (19 August 2012). "The PM, an old flame and a lot of smoke". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 21 August 2012.
13. ^ Wright, Jessica (23 August 2012). "PM claims she's victim of 'very sexist smear campaign'". The Age. Retrieved 26 August 2012.
14. ^ "The PM, the law firm and the slush fund". The Canberra Times. 22 August 2012. Retrieved 22 August 2012.
15. ^ Crook, Andrew (29 August 2011). "Milne debacle: how a 16 year old story was spiked by The Oz". crikey.com.au. Retrieved 22 August 2012.
16. ^ Freebairn, Pip (22 June 2012). "Dumped A-G says Labor soft on corrupt unions". Australian Financial Review. Retrieved 26 August 2012.
17. Osborne, Paul (13 December 2011). "We wanted to stay, say two Labor ministers". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 26 August 2012.
18. ^ Wright, Tony (30 August 2011). "Bombshell for Gillard explodes under Murdoch press". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 22 August 2012.
19. ^ Holmes, Jonathan. "All dredged up and nowhere to go". Media Watch. abc.net.au. Retrieved 22 August 2012.
20. Bridy, Michael. (12 November 2011). "Host Michael Smith reaches settlement to leave 2UE". The Australian. Retrieved 28 August 2012.
21. Holmes, Jonathan. (27 August 2012) "Scandal-mongering or good reporting?", Media Watch, Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 28 August 2012.
22. "ABC dumps commentator Glenn Milne" The Australian. 3 September 2011. Retrieved 28 August 2012.
23. ^ Butterly, Nick (20 August 2012). "Pressure on Gillard over law job exit". The West Australian. Retrieved 21 August 2012.
24. Gordon, Michael (22 August 2012). "No evidence Gillard had case to answer, says the investigating lawyer". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 22 August 2012.
25. Coorey, Phillip (20 August 2012). "Gillard cleared of wrongdoing by former employer". The Age. Retrieved 21 August 2012.
26. ^ Maher, Sid (24 August 2012). "Julia Gillard declares file closed on union scandal allegations". The Australian. Retrieved 26 August 2012.
27. Hedley Thomas; Pia Akerman (14 November 2012). "Whistleblower Wayne Hem alerted AWU's national secretary to $5000 payment to Julia Gillard". The Australian. Retrieved 14 November 2012.
28. "The $5000 question - claims Julia Gillard's ex-boyfriend Bruce Wilson put cash into her account" (14 November 2012), The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 14 November 2012

• Controversies in Australia