From World Church News - 7 May 2005

First priest for cabinet post. A CATHOLIC priest who wrote the document governing the Australian Church’s response to the sexual abuse crisis has been appointed to the South Australian Cabinet’s executive committee – believed to be the first time a government in Australia has named a non-elected person to such a post. Msgr David Cappo, the vicar-general of the Adelaide archdiocese, and a businessman, Robert Champion de Crespigny, will join the state’s premier, Mike Rann, and senior ministers from the governing Labor Party, Kevin Foley and Patrick Conlon, on the committee. Msgr Cappo already chairs the Government’s social inclusion board, while Mr de Crespigny heads the economic development board.

 

From South Australia's House of Assembly, Estimates Committee A,  Wednesday 15 June 2005
Mr HAMILTON-SMITH: I move to the Economic Development Board and I refer to Budget Paper 4 Volume 1, page 2.8, program 1. What is to be the total cost of running the EDB in 2005-06 and what proportion of that is broken up into administration and salaries, for example, compared with project related expenses?
The Hon.M.D.RANN: Again, rather than spending millions of dollars on public servants, I think we spent about $425 000 on the EDB, which we think is money well spent, because we have some of the best minds in the country. We have people such as Mike Moore, the former head of the World Trade Organisation, the man who brought China into the WTO. Rather than have a whole lot of public servants with big titles, we decided to try to get people who are heavy hitters in business and in government. As part of its charter, the EDB is required to meet at least four times a year to consider issues and report back to the government. In fact, it is massively more active than that, because EDB members are freely available to us and are also involved in a whole range of subcommittees and other groups.
During 2004‑05 the EDB held six meetings, including two regional meetings in Whyalla and the Riverland, which increased the EDB's understanding of regional issues. EDB member Bob Hawke, who chaired the summit revisited, also played an important role in the Deputy Premier's trade mission to China in April 2005. Mr Hawke was in China attending the Bo'ao Economic Forum at the federal govern­ment's invitation, so the majority of his travel costs for the trip were borne by the federal government. Mr John Bastian was appointed to the position of Deputy Chairman of the Economic Development Board in late 2004 and receives $65,000 per annum. John Bastian's work is just outstanding. Members of the EDB are entitled to receive board fees of $45,000 per annum. The Chairman, Mr Robert Champion de Crespigny, waived his right to receive board fees.
#58 The board membership for 2004‑05 is: Robert Cham­pion de Crespigny AC; Cheryl Bart, who is also chair of the South Australian Film Corporation and Adelaide Film Festival; John Bastian; Grant Belchamber, who comes from the ACTU; Monsignor David Cappo who, of course, is the chair of the Social Inclusion Board, and I think it has been terrific to have that crossover; Maurice Crotti, who would be known for his own family's industries but he is also a great citizen; Andrew Fletcher, who used to be the head of Halliburton KBR's Asia Pacific office; Hon Bob Hawke AC, former Prime Minister of Australia; Dr Michael Keating, who is the former secretary of the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet and one of the nation's top public servants; Wayne Jackson, former head of the AFL, former head of the brewery and former head of BRL Hardy; Mike Moore, former head of the WTO; Dr Helen Nugent AO, whom people would know from banking and so many other areas; Fiona Roche from the Adelaide Development Company, a major property developer and expert in planning; and David Simmons, head of Hills Industries and particularly strong in the manufactur­ing area.
You could not get a more dedicated group of individuals, totally bipartisan, and we get massive value for money. For the $45 000 per head per annum, I put them up against so many people in the department previously, when we had bloated numbers but not the activity that we wanted.

From Army Contract Official Critical of Halliburton Pact Is Demoted
... Known as a stickler for the rules on competition, Ms. Greenhouse initially received stellar performance ratings, Mr. Kohn said. But her reviews became negative at roughly the time she began objecting to decisions she saw as improperly favoring Kellogg Brown & Root, he said. Often she hand-wrote her concerns on the contract documents, a practice that corps leaders called unprofessional and confusing. ...

For those wondering how Rummy, Cheney and Condi are going to find the cash to invest in Adelaide, A Reader's Guide to Base Closings. Plenty good jobs coming up, for those with a professional attitude, paralysis of the critical faculty and selective blindness.