Developers and donations
ACT Greens MLA Deb Foskey has today called on the Canberra Liberals to come clean on the view of the proposed Tralee Development.
NSW Planning Minister Frank Sartor is under fire for giving planning approval to the Tralee residential development between Canberra and Queanbeyan, after it was disclosed that the NSW Labor Party accepted a sizeable donation from Tralee developer Village Building Company.
"It is not unusual for developers to give donations to political parties. In this case, Village Building Company has also given significant support to the Canberra Liberals in the run up to the last federal election, and a little support to ACT Labor as well" Dr Foskey said today.
"It is worth noting that Canberra Liberals - at both a local and a national level - have been silent on the airport noise and Tralee development issue."
"Disclosure laws being what they are, we don't even know what donations have been made to Labor or Liberal since the end of last June. But in 2006/07 the Village Building Company donated $13,760 to the Canberra Liberals (and $1,500 to ACT Labor)."
"While we understand that ACT Labor opposes Tralee, we don't yet know what the Canberra Liberals think."
"It would be good to be sure that the Village Building Company's donations haven't bought Liberal Party silence from Senator Humphries or from his Assembly colleagues."
"There is a bigger issue about political donations. When the ACT Government's Electoral Legislation Amendment Bill is debated in the Assembly, the Greens will move to have all political donations publicly declared before elections (rather than afterwards), and for donations from developers declared every time they make a development application."
"There is a persuasive case to put a stop to all political donations to politicians and political parties. At the very least, however, we need a really transparent system" Dr Foskey said.
