Concetta Fierravanti-Wells (NSW, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Ageing) Share this | Hansard source

Today I would like to reflect on some exchanges in the New South Wales parliament which raise issues relating to Mr Carr's judgement in relation to Mr Obeid. The basic question is whether Mr Carr should have been aware of what Mr Obeid was up to but simply averted his eyes and looked the other way.

Clearly, Mr Obeid's actions over many years raised serious questions about his suitability for office and most especially about his being made a minister. Given matters before ICAC at the moment, I will not traverse those issues. I simply ask the question: does Mr Carr ever pause and reflect that, had he not promoted, protected and defended Mr Obeid, Australia would not now be in a position where its international reputation is at risk of being stained by the activities of his mates in the New South Wales right, or is the minister just a hand-washer in a remorse-free zone?

Before we look at some of these exchanges, I remind the Senate that Mr Obeid became a member of the Legislative Council on 12 September 1991. He remained an MLC until 10 May 2011. For almost 20 years as an upper house member he appears to have wielded an extraordinary level of power. In an article on 10 May 2011 entitled 'Obeid turns off the power and makes a quiet exit,' Sean Nicholls wrote:

The year after entering Parliament, he and a close friend, the former federal MP Graham Richardson, arranged for the late stockbroker Rene Rivkin to buy the Offset Alpine printing press from media mogul Kerry Packer. Mr Obeid's son was made a director.

The printing premises were destroyed by fire in 1993.

Mr Obeid had bad luck when it came to fires. In July 1983 fire destroyed the offices of his newspaper, El Telegraph, in Garners Avenue, Marrickville. Bad luck was to follow him to his newspaper's new premises in Marrickville Road, where, in 1992, there was another fire. Mr Obeid also had the misfortune of having two fires at his former home in Concord.

Just on Offset Alpine, as Kate McClymont reported on 31 October 2003, the fire at the plant turned out to be a stroke of very good luck for a group of high-profile investors. The plant was worth $4 million and the company had just taken out insurance for $53 million, with full replacement value of $42 million. But, as the article states, 'the only person to have whinged about missing out on the Offset Alpine' payout was 'ALP heavyweight Eddie Obeid', who had put the deal together.

The article states a number of matters, including that Mr Obeid was first offered Offset but could not come up with the $2 million for 25 per cent of the company; that Mr Obeid mentioned the deal to his friend Graham Richardson, who suggested his good friend, Rene Rivkin, might be interested; that Rivkin agreed to finance the deal; and that 'Mr Obeid was privately bitter over the matter and has complained to friends that he felt Rivkin ripped him off.' Interestingly, in an article in The Monthly in July 2010, Paul Barry writes: 'Intriguingly, the official police report revealed that an anonymous note had been sent to the insurance company’s fire investigator', pointing the finger at Mr Obeid—who, indeed, had had a problem with fires in the past. Mr Carr was Premier from 4 April—