Lobbyists, Lies & Libertarians

Panellists: Bob Carr, Former Foreign Minister; Kerry Chikarovski, Former State Liberal leader; Eva Cox, Author & social analyst; Brendan O'Neill, British Editor, Spiked Online; and Nigel Kennedy, British Violin Virtuoso. -- Bob Carr Bob Carr fulfilled a lifelong ambition when he became Australia’s Foreign Minister in March 2012. The former Labor premier of NSW was appointed by Julia Gillard to fill a casual Senate vacancy and went directly into Cabinet in the foreign affairs portfolio, but quit the Senate shortly after Labor lost government in last year’s election. This month Bob published his latest book, Diary of a Foreign Minister, sparking a storm of controversy because of his comments about first-class air travel and airline food. Bob insisted most of his comments were self-mocking and satirical, but the criticisms continued even though many critics praised the overall thrust of the book and its insights on foreign policy and the political process. Previously Bob had been the longest continuously-serving Premier in the history of NSW. He served as Leader of the Opposition from 1988 until his election as Premier in March 1995. He was re-elected in 1999 and then in March 2003 he secured third four-year term. He retired from State politics in 2005 after over 10 years as Premier. As Premier he introduced the world's first carbon trading scheme and curbed the clearing of native vegetation as an anti-greenhouse measure. He was a member of the International Task Force on Climate Change convened by UK Prime Minister Tony Blair, and was made a life member of the Wilderness Society in 2003. He has also received the World Conservation Union International Parks Merit Award for creating 350 new national parks. Bob has received the Fulbright Distinguished Fellow Award Scholarship. He has served as Honorary Scholar of the Australian American Leadership Dialogue. Earlier books included Thoughtlines, What Australia Means to Me and My Reading Life. -- Kerry Chikarovski After a career as a solicitor, Kerry Chikarovski was elected to the New South Wales Parliament in May 1991. After only thirteen months in Parliament she was appointed Minister for Consumer Affairs. She later held the portfolios of Assistant Minister of Education, Minister for Industrial Relations, and the first Minister for the Status of Women appointed in NSW. In December 1994 Kerry was elected Deputy Leader of the NSW Parliamentary Liberal Party – a position she held until the State election the following year which Labor won. In Opposition Kerry held the portfolio responsibilities of Corrective Services and the Environment. In December 1998 she was elected Leader of the NSW Parliamentary Liberal Party, the first woman to lead a major political party in NSW. Following the 1999 election loss Kerry continued in the leadership until 2002, retiring from politics at the 2003. She then established her own consultancy advising individuals and organisations who seek her experience in working with various levels of government. Kerry is a Trustee of the Sydney Cricket Ground and Sydney Football Stadium and is involved in many community projects, including the boards of a number of charities. In 2004 she released her life story Chika which has been described as an uncompromisingly honest account of life in the difficult world of the NSW Parliament. Kerry was born in Sydney in 1956. She grew up in the northern suburbs and attended the University of Sydney. In her spare time Kerry enjoys working out at the gym and spending time with her grown-up children, Lisa and Mark. -- Eva Cox Eva Cox is an influential Australian feminist. She was born Eva Hauser in Vienna in 1938, and was soon declared stateless by Hitler so grew up as a refugee in England, Italy and then Australia from age 10. Eva is an unabashed feminist and passionately promotes inclusive, diverse and equitable ways of living together. Her 1996 book Leading Women explained why women who made a difference were usually labelled as difficult, a label she wears with pride. She was the ABC Boyer lecturer (1995) on making societies more civil. She has been an academic, political adviser and public servant, and now runs a small research and policy consultancy. A sociologist by trade, Eva promotes ideas widely and eclectically in books, on line, in journals and other media. Eva has been recognised in various ways: Australian Humanist of the Year, a Distinguished Alumnus at UNSW and an Edna Grand Stirrer award. She also a Fellow of the Centre for Policy Development and as a Research Fellow at Jumbunna Indigenous House of Learning (UTS). In 2011 Eva featured on a series of postage stamps celebrating eminent Australian women, the others being Germaine Greer, Anne Summers and Elizabeth Evatt. -- Brendan O'Neill Brendan O'Neill is editor of spiked, the online magazine with the modest ambition of making history as well as reporting it. He is the author of Can I Recycle My Granny and 39 Other Eco-Dilemmas – a satire on the green movement, and is a regular columnist for The Australian. He started his career in journalism at LM (Living Marxism), until it was forced to close following a libel action brought by ITN. His journalism has been widely published on both sides of the Atlantic, including in The Spectator, The New Statesman, The Guardian, The Catholic Herald and The Christian Science Monitor. He also writes regular reports for BBC News Online and is a correspondent for the Polish political weekly Prze Kroj. He makes regular appearances across the British and American broadcast media. He is also co-founder of the Manifesto Club, which aims to reclaim the creative spirit of the Enlightenment for the 21st century. -- Nigel Kennedy For over twenty-five years, Nigel Kennedy has been acknowledged as one of the world's leading violin virtuosos and is seen as one of the most important violinists Britain has ever produced. His virtuoso technique, unique talent and mass appeal have brought fresh perspectives to both the classical and contemporary repertoire. He is the best selling classical violinist of all time. During his career, Nigel has undertaken countless international tours, performing with the world's leading orchestras and conductors throughout Europe, North America, Central and South America, South-East Asia and Australia. He founded the orchestra of Life, made up of vibrant young (mainly Polish) musicians, which made its debut tour in Germany in April 2010. It presented a unique program of Duke Ellington and Bach and went on to perform in major cities and festivals in Europe. In 2010, Nigel’s UK performances of Vivaldi’s Four Seasons included a sold-out show at London’s Royal Albert Hall. In February 2012 he presented Bach plus Fats Waller across Asia. This was an entirely acoustic programme developed for venues with natural acoustics. Nigel is a passionate Aston Villa fan and attends as many games as his schedule allows. He has one son, is married to a Polish lawyer, Agnieszka, and they divide their time between homes in the UK and Poland. -- Audience: ALP 36%, Coalition 46%, Greens 10% REPUBLIC Andrew Wilson asked: When I see the Union Jack on our flag I see the Magna Carta, the stand against the tyrants Napoleon, Hitler & the Kaiser. The poms can't have their symbols back they were paid for with the blood of our service men and women. Other peoples from nations that had a less positive experience of the British Empire have valid reasons for change but in the referendum the high migrant areas appreciate what we have here & voted accordingly. Why does a trendy section of our society hate our history and fail to accept the people's decision? ISRAEL LOBBY Greg Weiss asked: Bob Carr, in your previous book “My Reading Life” you praised the Jewish Holocaust survivor Primo Levi. Primo Levi's family along with 6 million Jews were murdered while waiting for the world to speak up on their behalf. None did. That is why the Jewish people have been forced /opted to have their own lobby groups as no one lobbied on their behalf. What is the problem then with a Jewish lobby group? I see no difference between it pushing for its own case any more than a Gay lobby group fighting for Gay rights or the Groceries Lobby arguing for its interests or any other group. Why single out the Jewish lobby group from any other one? PALESTINE Jessie Tu asked:Nelson Mandela famously said that our freedom will be incomplete without the freedom of the Palestinians. I believe that what is occurring to them is a direct violation of the most fundamental human rights. However, I've noticed that my views are often deemed 'Pro - Palestinian' and retaliated against and labelled 'anti Semitic' by those on the other side. How can a logical dialogue even begin when the belief in the equality of all humans is met with such aggressive defensiveness? POLITICIANS, LIES AND MEMORY LOSS Lee Wilmott asked via video:Since the last election, I have had the nauseating experience of sitting back and watching politicians lie, then lie about their lies, break promises and confabulate such stories about those broken promises. I’ve watched such periods of amnesia with people before ICAC that I think they need a brain scan. Why do politicians hold the Australian people in such contempt as to believe that we will accept every bit of crud they say? Who do politicians believe they serve: themselves, the party or the people that elected them? ICAC: CARR’S VIEW Erin Chew asked: NSW politics has become a dirty game, full of bribes, gifts and favours for multimillion dollar mates. The Obeid dynasty has given a dirty name to NSW Labor and to NSW politics, and since then we have seen a domino effect with Arthur Sinodinos from Tony Abbott's Government to now former Premier Barry O'Farrell. Mr Carr, as a former Premier what is your response to this corruption, particularly when Obeid and the faceless men formed part of your Government, and what would you have done differently if you knew back then about the under handed dealings? OFF THE FLOOR An audience member asked: How much damage will it do to our system of democracy if people who go before ICAC and who are viewed by the public generally who are so corrupt, don’t actually get to face punishment or face charges, whereas good people like Barry O’Farrell fall on their swords? GEORGE BRANDIS AND CLIMATE CHANGE Claire King asked: Recently George Brandis said it was "deplorable that deniers were being excluded from the climate change debate". Does the panel think it would be ignorant and medieval, not to mention biased, to portray the two sides of this argument equally when there is substantially more evidence for one? EASTER David Campbell asked: Do the events of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, which lie at the heart of the Easter season, have any relevance to contemporary society 2,000 years after they took place?