Comments on: Lowy, the RBA and tax: join the dates http://www.crikey.com.au/2008/07/22/lowy-the-rba-and-tax-join-the-dates/ now with extra source Sun, 22 Nov 2009 09:14:11 +1100 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.6 hourly 1 By: Geoffrey Hart http://www.crikey.com.au/2008/07/22/lowy-the-rba-and-tax-join-the-dates/#comment-7286 Geoffrey Hart Thu, 01 Jan 1970 10:00:00 +0000 #comment-7286 don't you Mr Lowy me don’t you Mr Lowy me

]]> By: Matt http://www.crikey.com.au/2008/07/22/lowy-the-rba-and-tax-join-the-dates/#comment-7287 Matt Thu, 01 Jan 1970 10:00:00 +0000 #comment-7287 Richard Farmer. I just shake my head. First, a few months back you admit to lobbying a Minister without disclosing your client. Now you happily brag about using your position as an advisor to gain consultancy work. Perhaps the next time you piously throw stones about others behaviour (as you so regularly do) you should look in the mirror first…. Richard Farmer. I just shake my head. First, a few months back you admit to lobbying a Minister without disclosing your client. Now you happily brag about using your position as an advisor to gain consultancy work. Perhaps the next time you piously throw stones about others behaviour (as you so regularly do) you should look in the mirror first….

]]> By: Tom McLoughlin http://www.crikey.com.au/2008/07/22/lowy-the-rba-and-tax-join-the-dates/#comment-7288 Tom McLoughlin Thu, 01 Jan 1970 10:00:00 +0000 #comment-7288 Comment #1 - Much to the consternation of the big party closed shop I got onto Waverley Council in Sept 1995 against something like 15 candidates, so I read with interest this chronology of Mayne above "In November 1996, a year after Lowy's appointment by Keating" to the RBA. Because it wasn't long before Westfield proposed their regional sized big box mall at Bondi Junction for a sub regional area. So the quid pro quo was in it seems because it turns out after PK lost office in 96 he became a consultant on pushing through the Lowy scheme for a mall at Bondi Junction, including public air space, with Knowles as state planning minister from memory. PK's bright daughter then worked in Knowles office as an adviser in the noughties. We had a high calibre director of planning Bill Gawne who had Westfield's measure but the Minister called it in anyway. I was so lacking in ambition I must have been the only one who voted against the development for promoting excessive car parking. The rest is history with the Big Brash Box done with Woollahra losing it's chunk of Bondi Junction to ALP friendly Waverley, Double Bay and other strip retail business model trashed and Keating moving on to bigger better business schemes. Those with the days dodging flak from then Mayor now MP Paul Pearce, brash George Newhouse and the beaten down Libs.<br /><br />Memory #2 - it may have been Phillip Clark then at ABC now with 2GB or Richard Glover still at ABC who interviewed Big Frank's biographer - The cracking first question was - Is he an ethical business man ... does he pay his tax? There was a second of dead air time which spoke volumes until the query was flicked off with a dead bat. Good radio that.<br /><br />Comment #3 - I was amazed when suddenly the guy who had to grovel over Ken Hooper trickery suddenly had a think tank in his name starting some years back, then as the high calibre, and it can be said independent thinking, nature of those in the Lowy Institute became apparent I sort of ground my teeth and got over it. But I still think these experts have lost just a squeak of credibility all the same reflecting glory back to Big Frank the retail tyro with all their high minded policy endeavours. <br /><br />I never forgot the cynicism of the Bondi Junction Westfield approval. Comment #1 - Much to the consternation of the big party closed shop I got onto Waverley Council in Sept 1995 against something like 15 candidates, so I read with interest this chronology of Mayne above “In November 1996, a year after Lowy’s appointment by Keating” to the RBA. Because it wasn’t long before Westfield proposed their regional sized big box mall at Bondi Junction for a sub regional area. So the quid pro quo was in it seems because it turns out after PK lost office in 96 he became a consultant on pushing through the Lowy scheme for a mall at Bondi Junction, including public air space, with Knowles as state planning minister from memory. PK’s bright daughter then worked in Knowles office as an adviser in the noughties. We had a high calibre director of planning Bill Gawne who had Westfield’s measure but the Minister called it in anyway. I was so lacking in ambition I must have been the only one who voted against the development for promoting excessive car parking. The rest is history with the Big Brash Box done with Woollahra losing it’s chunk of Bondi Junction to ALP friendly Waverley, Double Bay and other strip retail business model trashed and Keating moving on to bigger better business schemes. Those with the days dodging flak from then Mayor now MP Paul Pearce, brash George Newhouse and the beaten down Libs.

Memory #2 - it may have been Phillip Clark then at ABC now with 2GB or Richard Glover still at ABC who interviewed Big Frank’s biographer - The cracking first question was - Is he an ethical business man … does he pay his tax? There was a second of dead air time which spoke volumes until the query was flicked off with a dead bat. Good radio that.

Comment #3 - I was amazed when suddenly the guy who had to grovel over Ken Hooper trickery suddenly had a think tank in his name starting some years back, then as the high calibre, and it can be said independent thinking, nature of those in the Lowy Institute became apparent I sort of ground my teeth and got over it. But I still think these experts have lost just a squeak of credibility all the same reflecting glory back to Big Frank the retail tyro with all their high minded policy endeavours.

I never forgot the cynicism of the Bondi Junction Westfield approval.

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