Analysis
The missing piece of the integrity puzzle: politicians' private interests
Federal parliament needs to act against MPs who don’t declare their private interests and restrict gifts, free travel, and hospitality from influence peddlers. Check out our proposed reforms.
The real story behind David Collard’s departure from PwC
Exclusive: The CEO and founder of scandal plagued Scale Facilitation left PwC in circumstances he’d prefer to keep under wraps.
US authorities investigate Australian company over alleged wage theft
Scale Facilitation, the scandal plagued company promoted by the Deputy Prime Minister and Opposition Leader, is alleged to have breached New York State wage theft laws.
Getting Scalier: David A. Collard's creditors, lawsuits, now a thing of Scale
Australian entrepreneur and ex-PwC partner David A. Collard is being sued for rent on both his fancy apartment in Manhattan as well as Scale's 88th floor World Trade Center headquarters. That's on top of an ATO tax raid, unpaid staff and creditors, and defaulting on the purchase of Britishvolt in the UK.
Is PwC caught up in Scale Facilitation’s alleged $150 million tax fraud?
Scale Facilitation is in default in its takeover of Britishvolt. After a financial crime taskforce raid in Australia and failures to pay staff both here and in the US, its chief executive David A. Collard remains defiant. Open Politics questions why PwC is getting paid when staff and creditors have been missing out.
New revelations about ex-PwC partner's company raided over alleged tax fraud
An ex-PwC partner's lithium battery startup Scale Facilitation pulled a top flight crowd from both sides of Australian politics to its grand Manhattan HQ opening in December. Since then, Australian staff haven't been paid on time, the AFP has raided their Geelong offices over alleged tax fraud, and now we can reveal concerning and bizarre activities stateside.
Ninth politician caught not disclosing junket
In what is becoming an all to regular occurrence, another federal parliamentarian has failed to disclose their privately funded overseas trip - the ninth we've discovered in less than eight months. Open Politics looks at what's driving a culture of non-compliance and how to fix it.
Golf classified: Deputy PM won't budge on naming wealthy golf buddy
Despite our emails, phone calls, and now an FOI request to his office, Richard Marles just won't divulge who provided him with a free round of golf at an exclusive US golf club on the eve of AUKUS talks last year.
Please explain, Pauline Hanson: Why didn't you declare your $1.1m property?
Senator Hanson's statement to the Register of Senators’ Interests last week is one of the strangest we've seen: she declared no longer receiving rental income from a property she never declared to the register.
Travel and hospitality Nearly 30% of federal parliamentarians have accepted sponsored overseas travel and hospitality since the 2019 election, raising questions about undue influence peddling from foreign and commercial interests. Foreign governments and private groups subsidise 132 overseas trips over four years
Fore! Deputy PM won't disclose details about free golf round
Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Richard Marles has breached parliamentary rules and the Ministerial Code of Conduct by not disclosing who gave him a free round of golf at a top US club with an ugly past.
Transparency MP the latest caught not declaring junket
The other week our social media monitoring uncovered five politicians who didn't declare privately-sponsored junkets. Today we look at two more and ask why interest disclosure rules are not being enforced.
Taipei Confidential: More junkets exposed
Another day, another revelation. Our social media sleuthing has uncovered more MPs who haven’t declared privately sponsored overseas trips.
Three politicians fail to declare overseas junkets
If you are a politician who appears in happy snaps while on privately funded junkets, it's probably a good idea to disclose who funded your trip to the parliament's interests registers.
Money AND gifts: How the gambling industry buys political influence
In addition to donating millions to Labor and the Coalition parties, gaming companies and pokies venues are giving hundreds of expensive gifts to their federal MPs, our new analysis reveals. Open Politics shows who's giving and who’s getting, as well as those with shares in gambling companies.
The company they keep: where MPs invest
Open Politics' analysis shows which public companies and industries are popular investments with federal MPs, who the big shareholders and traders are, and highlights potential conflicts of interest.
Assistant Health Minister invests in Big Tobacco
While the Albanese government seeks to toughen tobacco controls, the Assistant Health Minister Ged Kearney is investing in index funds with shareholdings in the tobacco industry. Update: Kearney divested three days after this story was published.
The public cost of private gifts
Much is made of the corrupting impact of political donations but little attention is paid to the non-monetary kind: gifts, free travel and hospitality that many federal parliamentarians eagerly accept from vested interests. Open Politics looks at the risk these benefits pose and the need for reform.
Hollie's undeclared junket to the Holy Land
Liberal senator and shadow minister Hollie Hughes has breached Senate rules by not declaring her sponsored travel to Israel. Open Politics looks at a repeat offender and the need for reform. Update: Hughes disclosed the trip three days after this story was published.
No housing crisis for politicians
While owning a home has become out of reach for millions of Australians, many parliamentarians are building large real estate portfolios with the help of tax concessions and taxpayer-funded travel allowances.
Another minister in breach of the ministerial code of conduct?
Following Open Politics' revelations about the shareholdings of Bill Shorten, Tim Ayres and Kristy McBain on 27 August, we've found the Assistant Health and Ageing Minister Ged Kearney is potentially in breach of the code by having indirect shareholdings in the Australian healthcare sector.
Richo: The lobbyist prohibited from lobbying
Open Politics has exposed that lobbyist and notorious ex-Labor senator Graham Richardson is not on the federal lobbyist register. This prohibits him from talking to anyone in the federal government on behalf of his clients.
Liberal senator fails to declare helicopter flight
Liberal Senator Hollie Hughes has not declared to the Register of Senators' Interests a helicopter flight she took as a guest of the Port of Newcastle Corporation in 2020, Open Politics can reveal.
A system Eddie Obeid would love
Many federal politicians don't declare their private interests, fail to fully disclose them, or don't do so in the required time, and the officials who manage the interest registers say it's not their job to enforce the rules. Open Politics looks at a disclosure regime that only serves politicians.
The price of admission
Federal politicians from NSW and Queensland never miss an opportunity to promote their love of the people's game in the belief it makes them more relatable to voters - think the PM with the Sharks and the Opposition Leader with his Rabbitohs. But, unlike the average spectator, they rarely pay to attend games, with the NRL and others providing free tickets. Does the public end up paying the bill?
Corruption starts with a half price hamburger
Open Politics is launching a campaign to stop federal MPs and senators accepting gifts, free travel and hospitality from private groups and foreign governments. Join us by asking your local MP to make an election commitment to decline benefits in the next term of parliament.
Backers of beer tax campaign ply politicians with booze and hospitality
The (un)successful campaign to cut the beer tax was funded by the Australian Hotels Association, the Australian Brewers Association, and Clubs Australia. Open Politics details the booze and hospitality these organisations and their members have dished out to MPs and senators since the last election.(Despite Newscorp media confidently predicting a budget cut, the night turned into a fizzer for the industry. All that lobbying and largesse wasted.)
ShareholdingsGiftsTravel and hospitality
The links between politicians and dirty energy
One in four parliamentarians or their immediate family have declared shareholdings in or gifts and travel or hospitality from companies that are among the nation's 100 largest corporate greenhouse gas emitters, an examination of the interest registers reveals.
Travel and hospitalityGiftsMemberships
Flying high: How politicians travel in style
Qantas and Virgin provide MPs and senators with access to luxury airport lounges and flight upgrades. But at what cost. Open Politics tallies up the freebies being dished out by Australia’s domestic carriers and foreign airlines.
Donor Kebab: Political donors give more than money
Cross referencing the Australian Electoral Commission's donations register with the Parliament's interests registers reveals industrial scale influence peddling, with some of Australia's largest donors providing federal politicians with food, alcohol, and sports and concert tickets. And a Coalition MP suspects this is not the full extent of the largesse.
The Senate's family secrets
Unlike MPs, senators are not required to publicly disclose the interests of their partners and children. As a result, almost nothing is known about the family interests of 11 ministers and 10 shadow ministers. Open Politics discusses why this matters.
Political junkets and influence
If you want a free overseas holiday it pays to be an elected official. But it may not be costless. Here's our analysis on the foreign governments, think tanks, and lobby groups giving junkets to our MPs and senators.
Gambling industry sprays hospitality and gifts
Politicians are the big winners from Australia's gambling companies. See our analysis of who's receiving hospitality and gifts from an industry that ignores its anti-money laundering obligations.
