Here’s what we learned so far this morning from evidence given by the @GBRFoundation Chair in #SenateInquiry about 9 April meeting in which Turnbull offered $444m of public money to the private foundation: Thread 👇 1. Turnbull’s diary secretary contacted the GBRF Chair only 2 days before to organise the meeting - the secretary told the Chair she didn’t know what the meeting was about.
2. The meeting took place in the PM’s Sydney ministerial office

There is a correlation between the closure of rural and remote maternity services and the higher rates of stillbirth in regional areas in Australia, the #SenateInquiryStillbirth has heard from the National Rural Health Alliance. Earlier in hearings, the #SenateInquiryStillbirth heard that rural and regional areas of Australia have lost 40% of their maternity services.

The #SenateInquiryStillbirth is now getting underway in Parliament House. We will begin, as we often do, with bereaved parents giving evidence. I’m always in awe of their courage. #6babiesaday We are beginning with the parents of Patrick, Evelyn, Hope, and Grace & Matilda. #6babiesaday #SenateInquiryStillbirth

#SenateStillbirthInquiry hearings are underway in Brisbane now. We are starting by hearing from the bereaved parents of babies Annabelle, Elliott, Sandy and Leilani. #6babiesaday Once more, #SenateStillbirthInquiry hearing from bereaved parents who were never given antenatal information about stillbirth, its prevalence, the risks, prevention, and the gaps (and in some cases, horrible examples) in care afterwards. We have to do better. #6babiesaday

Upon waking to the news that Julie Bishop discovered feminism last night, I thought perhaps she and others in the Liberal Party might like to read this: theguardian.com/commentisfree/…

As a member of @ref_council (appointed by @TurnbullMalcolm , I might add) -
I am gobsmacked that years of deliberation & consultation with First Australians on constitutional recognition ends with Tony Abbott being dispatched with some fake job title to talk to indigenous people Here’s what this decision is: a few white men in power deciding what the Aboriginal community will be forced to accept from their government. (In this case, Tony Abbott)

How are we still in this space in 2018?

This is a cracking piece from ⁦@_LisaMCox⁩ #reefgate 👇 theguardian.com/environment/20… “but the documents supplied to Guardian Australia contain no due diligence work that the government says had been done by the department in March in relation to the almost half a billion dollar grant announced before the budget.”

A morning media summary of #ReefGate 👇

Twitter, if I have missed some stories from this morning, please let me know so I can add them here.... In @smh - @p_hannam writes about how donations to reef charities are drying up, thanks to the Turnbull govt’s grant (exactly the opposite of what the goverment said would happen) - a result of no due diligence, says @Tony_Burke

smh.com.au/environment/su…

We just saw in #qt how little due diligence the 🎩 Government undertook on the @GBRFoundation

Yesterday @JoshFrydenberg said the Govt gave the private foundation the $444m because of its “fundraising history” So, I just asked @Birmo in #qt how much money @GBRFoundation has raised in its history from corporate and private philanthropy.

Surely if they did ‘due diligence’ - he would know this. #ReefGate

Cracking yarn from ⁦@MikeySlezak⁩ #reefgate #mustread abc.net.au/news/2018-08-1… CSIRO CEO on @GBRFoundation Chair Dr Schubert:
“Better we help than he burns millions on overheads."

Good on CSIRO for wanting to stop this private foundation from wasting millions of public dollars.
Turnbull should have just given the money to the CSIRO in the first place.

“Mini-thread” update on #ReefGate , @InsidersABC and the @thepmo here 👇 Yesterday I asked these questions in Senate #qt to @MathiasCormann about the @thepmo ‘s attempts to interfere in the @InsidersABC coverage of #reefgate - including if the PM @TurnbullMalcolm stood by his office’s (now disproved) claims.

Cormann took them on notice

“Tolerance, respect, acceptance, equality” - so ends a magnificent speech by @SenatorWong moving a motion rejecting the division in Anning’s speech, and endorsing our multicultural nation.

I encourage all to read her words in Hansard. And @MathiasCormann supports the motion - noting it is magnificent that in Australia, the parliament can contain First Australians, as well as first generation migrant Australians & Australians whose families have been here for generations - from many nations on Earth.

“Some folks like to get away,
Take a holiday from the neighborhood
Hop a flight to Bondi Beach or to Bali’s ‘hood
But I'm takin' a helicopter to Hamilton island time
I'm in a luxury weekend state of mind”
(With apologies to Billy Joel)
#reefgate dailytelegraph.com.au/news/nsw/great… Truly this would be laughable if it wasn’t so damn serious. Farmers have to jump through hoops to get drought assistance. People with a disability can’t get their plans approved under the NDIS. There’s a severe shortage of Home Care packages for older people. #reefgate

Who in the Turnbull Government interfered in the ABC’s political coverage yesterday, this time (again) on @InsidersABC , and its coverage of #reefgate? On @InsidersABC on Sunday, @JoshFrydenberg repeatedly refused to detail what, if any, due diligence the Turnbull Government undertook on the private foundation it gave $444m of public money without a grant application or tender process:

https://twitter.com/insidersabc/status/1028421659890335744?s=21

Anna Marsden from @GBRFoundation told @leighsales last night that the GBRF has raised over $90m in the past 18 years.

She said the “audited figures” are “on their website”. #reefgate

Let’s check this claim out. Here’s the financial information currently available on the GBRF website: annual reports back to 2011. The Foundation was established in 1999.

New revelations in ⁦@australian⁩ today about ⁦@TurnbullMalcolm⁩ “fast” reef deal
Story from ⁦@aclennell⁩ & ⁦@bennpackham⁩ theaustralian.com.au/national-affai… It seems that the 🎩 Govt Expenditure Review Committee signed off on “seeking a commercial partner for a Great Barrier Reef Plan” on 28 March - and 9 days later @TurnbullMalcolm found them.

The @GBRFoundation says it’s raised $90m since it began in 2000. Labor analysed every year of its annual reports since 2000 and could only find $65m in revenue. #reefgate

Thread 👇 Let’s link to the story from @p_hannam because it sets out a summary of what we found. And then I will say more in the thread that follows. #ReefGate

smh.com.au/environment/cl…

Well, well, well. Let’s have a look at this. 👇 And then read my thread, please. #Reefgate

https://twitter.com/karlstefanovic/status/1025522984356728832

Here’s @karlstefanovic on air promoting a report done by Deloitte for the @GBRFoundation in July 2017

To summarise today’s Senate Inquiry hearings into the Turnbull Govt’s decision to award $444m to the Great Barrier Reef Foundation (GBRF) without a tender or grant application process. We now know for certain that this grant was not solicited by the GBRF. This was confirmed by the MD of GBRF Anna Marsden.

GBRF GM Anna Marsden tells the Inquiry that the Foundation did not seek $444m in funding. Says the Foundation Chair Dr John Schubert was offered the funding on 9 April in Sydney in a meeting with @TurnbullMalcolm @JoshFrydenberg and the Environment Dept Secretary Finn Pratt. The GBRF Chairman’s Panel members pay $20k a year to the Foundation, says Anna Marsden.

Today we heard in #estimates that Minister Fifield has lodged 1 complaint/month so far this year:
January: Date of the Hottest 100
February: Alberici Corporate tax articles
March: Tonightly sketch
April: Black Comedy sketch ABC Indigenous FB
May: Alberici Innovation story.

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We also heard in #estimates that Minister Fifield has been the first Communications Minister since Richard Alston to complain to ACMA (or its predecessor) about the ABC.

Alston complained about war coverage.

Fifield complained about a comedy sketch, and a comedy FB video.