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Legislative Council - Fifty-First Parliament, Second Session (51-2)
2008-07-22 Daily Xml
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ADELAIDE CITY COUNCIL

The Hon. R.I. LUCAS (14:45): I seek leave to make a brief explanation prior to asking the Leader of the Government a question about development in the Adelaide City Council area.

Leave granted.

The Hon. R.I. LUCAS: There has been some controversy in recent days about the government's decision in relation to what is known as the Tower 8 development in the Adelaide CBD. On 12 July this year the Minister for Urban Development and Planning issued a public statement, as follows:

Minister Holloway today described as intolerable the Adelaide City Council's rejection of the Aspen Group's proposed office tower in Franklin Street. Mr Holloway says he is urgently formulating a response to take to cabinet next week to ensure that the development assessment process in the Adelaide CBD is no longer blatantly politicised. The position adopted by the Adelaide City Council's Development Assessment Panel flies in the face of the planning reforms initiated by this government, Mr Holloway says.

His statement went on, but for the purpose of my question I do not need to read it all. Three days later, on 15 July, the Adelaide Advertiser carried a story headed 'Adelaide City Council stripped of planning powers for big developments', which stated:

The Adelaide City Council has been stripped of planning powers for projects costing more than $10 million, unlocking an expected surge of city development.

Further on in the story it states, `Planning minister Paul Holloway announced the state review two days later'—this is tracing the history of it—'but Mr Conlon said the council's decision had not influenced yesterday's announcement'. That seems to be in conflict with the statement made by the minister three days before. It continues:

This proposal has been around for a long time, although you have to think about what has happened in recent times, Mr Conlon said.

Members will be aware that over the past two years I have asked a series of questions of the minister in relation to planning and development issues and there has been some significant controversy about the role of two friends of the minister, Mr Nick Bolkus and Mr John Quirke, in terms of lobbying both this minister and the Rann government and other ministers on planning and development issues.

The Hon. R.P. Wortley: Using parliamentary privilege to sleaze and cast innuendo.

The Hon. R.I. LUCAS: I am not sure whether the Hon. Mr Wortley wants to outline the sleaze and innuendo at some stage: I will be happy to respond. I certainly reject any imputation against my good reputation in any way. I reject that completely. However, I will not be diverted. Given the controversy of these issues, some commentators have mentioned to me the importance of the minister and the Rann government being more transparent about the activities of lobbyists such as Mr Bolkus and Mr Quirke and of political donations to the minister's own party.

I note that the Australian Electoral Commission returns show that Babcock and Brown are listed as donors to the Australian Labor Party, with donations of some $24,400 in recent years to the Australian Labor Party. I also note that a director of the Aspen Group, Mr McCann, is listed as the head of property funds, mergers and acquisitions at Babcock and Brown. My questions are as follows:

1. Has the minister or any of his ministerial officers had any discussions with Mr Bolkus or Mr Quirke about the Tower 8 development or the government's decision to take certain planning powers away from the Adelaide City Council?

2. Has the Aspen Group, or any related company, any director of Aspen, or any company associated with a director of Aspen, made a donation to the Labor Party in the past two years? If so, what is the name of that company and how much has that particular company donated to the Australian Labor Party?

I ask this question in the full knowledge that Australian Electoral Commission returns, of course, only require donations to be listed above a certain level and donations below that level are not required to be listed by the Australian Labor Party.

The Hon. P. HOLLOWAY (Minister for Police, Minister for Mineral Resources Development, Minister for Urban Development and Planning) (14:51): In relation to that question, I have no idea whether Aspen has made a donation to the ALP because, as the planning minister, I go to a great deal of trouble to ensure that I do not have any knowledge of these matters. That is why I am not a member of the state executive of the Labor Party, or any other forum in which that might be revealed. Who donates to the ALP is a matter, first, for the Labor Party, and it is all disclosed. We do have public disclosure in this state.

In relation to the first question about whether John Quirke or Nick Bolkus have lobbied me in relation to the Tower 8 proposal, the answer is: no.

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