Writer
John Menadue
John Menadue is the Founder and Editor in Chief of Pearls and Irritations. He was formerly Secretary of the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet under Gough Whitlam and Malcolm Fraser, Ambassador to Japan, Secretary of the Department of Immigration and CEO of Qantas.
-
We were warned about lobbying.
In my blog of April 19 2014, ‘This is about more than a bottle of wine’ I referred to the need for major reforms in lobbying. Three and a half years ago the ICAC in NSW brought forward proposals to better manage lobbying and avoid corruption. The Recommendations of the ICAC are still relevant today. Continue reading »
-
John Menadue. The media, our region and the PM’s visit.
The Prime Minister’s visit to Japan, the Republic of Korea and China, highlighted for me the problems of media reporting and understanding our region. I have posted blogs on our media. See April 17, 2013, ‘Media failure: the tale of two bombings in two cities’; May 17, 2013, ‘Truth, trust and the media’ and January Continue reading »
-
This is about more than a bottle of wine
To mix my metaphors, the bottle of red wine that Barry O’Farrell received is only the tip of an iceberg – a sleezy world of lobbying, influence-peddling and corruption. Continue reading »
-
John Menadue. The new squatters on public land.
More alienation of public space. In my blog yesterday, I referred to the alienation of public space in Barangaroo and proposed for the Sydney Botanic Gardens. Today there are reports that Wentworth Park, which is Crown Land, will be developed as a billion dollar residential complex. In a letter to the SMH we are told Continue reading »
-
John Menadue. Using the military for political purposes
In my blog of March 26 (below) ‘Using the military for political purposes’, I drew attention to three instances in which the Australian Defence Forces have been used, apparently willingly, to support the party-political aims of the government. That political support has now been stepped up several notches by the comments of the Commander of Continue reading »
-
John Menadue. Tony Abbott in Japan
Tony Abbott has just completed his visit to Japan. The media has been full of stories about the improvement particularly in agricultural exports from Australia to Japan. It should all be taken with a grain of salt. There have been some improvements particularly for our beef exports but the hype and spin does not obscure Continue reading »
-
John Menadue. Citizenship and shared experience.
The recent decision by the NSW Government to evict pensioners and low-income tenants from the Rocks in Sydney highlighted for me the importance of mixed communities and shared experiences. We all benefit in society when we have shared experiences. We can then get to know other people’s aspirations and their problems. We invariably find that Continue reading »
-
John Menadue. Pity our diplomats.
It is not often that our diplomats in foreign posts receive or need our sympathy in the work they do. But just think of their present plight in defending the Australian Government’s behaviour in foreign policy. What we are seeing across so many countries is alarming. With many key countries, we are skating on very Continue reading »
-
John Menadue. Privatising Medibank Pte – who cares?
This is a repost from 28 November 2013. My own view is that all the private health insurance companies, including Medibank Pte are parasitical and undermine Medicare. The only important political issue in my mind is whether the policy holders who have contributed over decades to Medibank Pte should receive appropriate recompense rather than Continue reading »
-
John Menadue. An enormous financial heist is underway.
We saw the enormous power of the mining sector when the foreign-owned mining companies forced the Rudd government to ignominiously back down on its super profits tax. For less than $20 million in an advertising and public relations campaign the miners secured for themselves tax savings of over $60 billion. The public interest was surrendered Continue reading »
-
John Menadue. Gina Rinehart and the age of entitlement.
It is a bit rich for Gina Rinehart, with the enormous privileges she has inherited, to be telling us that we all need to work harder, cut taxes and curb wasteful government spending. Born on third base, as baseball enthusiasts would understand, does give a very jaundiced view of yourself and others. There is a Continue reading »
-
John Menadue. The lesser royals are on the move again.
Prince William, his wife Kate and son George are to visit Australia next month. What joy awaits us. The weather should be good for a holiday and adulation from Tony Abbott and his monarchist friends. Seeing such a visit, the leaders in our region will again scratch their heads. In this ‘Asian Century’ why is Continue reading »
-
John Menadue. Conservatives, conventions and traditions.
Conservatives extoll the importance of conventions, traditions, and respect for established institutions. But it seems to be only when it suits them. They lecture us and others about democracy, free elections, the separation of powers and the independence of the judiciary. Colloquially they sum it up ‘If it is not broken, don’t try to fix Continue reading »
-
John Menadue. The war on asylum seekers
For political purposes the government has deliberately embarked on a policy and a language to militarise the asylum seeker issue in the same way the Howard Government did in the “war on terror”. It is designed to highlight the government’s resolve, to play to our fears about a threat and to lessen our rights to Continue reading »
-
John Menadue. The Carbon Tax and Flat-Earthers.
Despite all the political rhetoric and hysteria, the evidence is mounting almost daily that the carbon tax is largely working as planned and that its impact on electricity prices is quite small, particularly compared with the ‘network costs’, the poles and wires, which have been the main drivers of increased electricity prices. But the flat-earthers Continue reading »
-
John Menadue. Patriots and scoundrels.
Samuel Johnson in 1775 said that ‘patriotism is the last refuge of the scoundrel’. That brings to mind the “patriotic” politics that both PM Abbott and the PM of Japan, Shinzo Abe, are playing. In this Tony Abbott will find more confirmation that “Japan is Australia’s best friend in Asia”, a term that irritates the Continue reading »
-
John Menadue. Manus and Nauru and Australia’s responsibility in regional processing.
An asylum seeker who comes to our shores must be protected. We cannot offload that responsibility onto another country. We continue to carry a responsibility for that asylum seeker whatever happens in Manus, Nauru or even Malaysia. I have not always held the view that those who come to Australia could be transferred and processed Continue reading »
-
John Menadue. Cutting waste and costs in health.
Last night on lateline, the Minister for Health Peter Dutton called for a public debate on health reform. I therefore have taken the liberty of reposting a blog of February 3 on ‘Cutting waste and costs in health’. The Minister for Health, Peter Dutton, has said that we must reduce waste and reduce costs in Continue reading »
-
John Menadue. Opinion and fact on climate change.
Tony Abbott keeps telling us that climate change is not a factor in the current drought in eastern Australia. Last October he ruled out climate change as a factor in October’s early season bushfires in the Blue Mountains. He keeps giving us opinions when the facts, supported by overwhelming scientific research, tell us that Australia Continue reading »
-
John Menadue. The squandered mining boom.
We are now paying a heavy price for our failure to manage the mining boom. The consequences are all too clear, particularly in the manufacturing sector. The mining boom drove up our exchange rate and wage costs. A Sovereign Wealth Fund (SWF) and the Resource Super Profits Tax (RSPT) would have minimised the problems. However, Continue reading »
-
John Menadue-Refugees – the demographic dividend.
As responsible members of the human family, we have a strong moral case to provide protection for the victims of persecution and violence. There is also a strong case in our own self-interest – that refugees almost by definition are risk-takers and entrepreneurial. It can be argued that they are amongst the most highly motivated Continue reading »
-
John Menadue. Pink batts and the Royal Commission – a bridge too far.
There are good grounds for Kevin Rudd and Julia Gillard to refuse to provide documents to the Royal Commission on Pink Batts. The Royal Commission is a very vindictive act by the Abbott Government. And the government looks like continuing to use other Royal Commissions for political purposes! In separate blogs by Michael Keating on Continue reading »
-
John Menadue. Cutting back government spending – does it include middle-class and corporate welfare?
Tony Abbott told his listeners recently at Davos that small government was the best form of government. The Minister for Health, Peter Dutton, has said that waste must be reduced in our health sector. The Minister for Social Services, Kevin Andrews, has told us that our welfare system is unsustainable and has appointed Patrick McClure Continue reading »
-
John Menadue. Sharks and asylum seekers
Over the weekend we have seen thousands of people crowding onto our beaches on both sides of the country to protest against the culling of sharks in Western Australia. I happen to think that the protesters are right, that people who swim in dangerous seas know the risks but are prepared to take them. Compared Continue reading »
-
John Menadue. Alcohol and violence on the streets — the tip of the iceberg.
In recent weeks public attention has been focused on alcohol fuelled violence in Sydney streets and the very slow response of the NSW government. But the response when it did come really only addressed the ugly tip of the iceberg. the violence on the streets. The government response was superficial – minimum mandatory sentencing, greater Continue reading »
-
John Menadue. Our lack of business and political skills in Asia.
The Business Council of Australia and business executives keep reminding us of the need to increase our productivity by up-skilling and better use of our labour resources. Unfortunately the business sector is spectacularly lagging in equipping itself for opportunities in Asia. Last week The Australian Financial Review surveyed the schools and educational backgrounds of the Continue reading »
-
‘I was a stranger and you took me in.’
‘I was a stranger and you took me in’ (Matthew 25) Well not really, according to Scott Morrison. In her article in the SMH on 3 November 2012, Jane Cadzow describes Scott Morrison as ‘a devout Christian who worships at Shirelive, an American style Pentecostal Church. The Shirelive website says its members believe the Bible Continue reading »
