Is it any wonder that we are growing ever more cynical about politics and politicians?
Sam Dastyari is just the latest politician to have been caught accepting gifts he should not have. Questions also surround the large donations made to Julie Bishop and it was only Arthur Sinodinos’ poor memory that saved him from probable censure or worse by the NSW ICAC.
And this is just the tip of a huge iceberg.
If the will is there the solution is simple: continuous, real time, declaration of all donations.
The Queensland government has promised to introduce this in 2017 and the Federal Government should do the same.
It is easy to establish and inexpensive to administer and would at the very least bring some transparency to the currently murky world of political donations.
All donations should be paid via an independent authority – such as the Electoral Commission – who would then distribute them to the intended recipients and post the relevant information on their website.
All other donations would be illegal.
There are many other questions about donations that can and should be debated but these are complex and contentious and should not be used to muddy the waters.
Real time disclosure doesn’t address all the issues but it would be a simple reform that would be a great step forward.
Pat Synge Funding & Disclosure (Inc)
