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April 22nd, 2012 
FAKE NEWS for the Zionist agenda
Mr Slipper said the allegations were grave and he would stand aside until he
was cleared of any criminal wrongdoing.
“I believe it is appropriate for me to stand aside as Speaker while this
criminal allegation is resolved,” he said. “Once it is clear they
are untrue I shall return to the Speakership.”
The scandal is yet another blow to Ms Gillard, who has suffered a dismal run
in the polls and rules with the support of a handful of independent MPs.
Her recruitment of Mr Slipper from the Opposition ranks last year gave her
vital extra numbers in the lower house because the Speaker – usually a
government MP – only typically votes in cases of a tie and is then expected
to support the ruling party.
Ms Gillard will now have 75 votes to the Opposition’s 73 but will have to rely
on the support of a wavering independent MP, Andrew Wilkie. Mr Slipper, as a
Speaker who has stood aside, cannot vote.
Zareh Ghazarian, an expert on Australian
politics at Monash University, told The Daily Telegraph the Gillard
government will continue to rule – “but in a much more fragile
state”.
“This will compound the government’s electoral problems even further,”
he said. “The Gillard Government is again only one vote way from losing
office. It is a horrible situation for her. It weaves itself in to the
broader narrative that the Opposition has run so successfully that this is a
disaster prone govt”
Ms Gillard said it was “appropriate that Mr Slipper has stood aside
whilst alleged criminal conduct is investigated”.
Tony Abbott, the Opposition leader, said the scandal raised “huge
question marks over [Ms Gillard’s judgment and the integrity”.
Since taking on the position of Speaker, Mr Slipper, a monarchist known for
his loud pinstripe suits, has reinserted a degree of pomp and grandeur to
Parliament. He has restored the Speaker’s formal gown as well as a long
procession in which he enters the chamber led by the Serjeant-at-Arms,
carrying a Mace.
But he came over to the Government’s side last year as something of a poisoned
chalice. He was notorious for his passion for publicly-funded travel and
unusual expense claims. He once claimed a taxi bill of more than £200 for an
evening ride in Canberra from Parliament House to his home six miles away
and then to a nearby Turkish restaurant – a journey that should have cost
roughly £25.
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