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May 15th, 2012 
FAKE NEWS for the Zionist agenda Cabinet minister Simon Crean says Labor should not preselect Craig Thomson for the next federal election unless the MP is cleared of any wrongdoing.
He also said Labor should have asked more questions about the member for Dobell before he was endorsed as its candidate for the 2010 election.
Mr Thomson has been suspended from the Labor caucus while Fair Work Australia prepares to take civil court action against him.
The workplace watchdog found Mr Thomson misused union members’ funds on escorts, cash withdrawals and electioneering when he headed the Health Services Union from 2002 until he entered federal parliament in 2007.
The MP denies the claims and will spell out his defence in parliament on Monday.
Mr Crean on Wednesday said it would be a mistake to re-endorse Mr Thomson as Labor candidate for Dobell unless he was cleared of the allegations.
“If he’s not cleared before preselections are held, I can’t see him being preselected,” he told Sky News.
“He shouldn’t be.”
Mr Crean said while he did not know the circumstances of the Dobell preselection before the 2010 election, “it would appear that harder questions should have been asked”.
The allegations about misuse of union funds were first aired in 2009.
“I think that, A, there was total denial and, B, there wasn’t as strong an understanding as to the extent of the problems as has come out since the Fair Work Australia report was handed down,” Mr Crean said.
He defended Prime Minister Julia Gillard’s response to the matter, saying she had acted strongly as soon as the FWA report was released.
Meanwhile, the coalition is considering referring Mr Thomson to the powerful parliamentary privileges committee after the MP was late to update his interests register about the NSW Labor Party paying his legal fees.
But there is uncertainty about whether Speaker Peter Slipper, who has stood aside from his position while sexual harassment claims are heard in court, would have the ultimate decision over referring the matter.
The coalition says it has advice that would be the case, The Australian Financial Review reported on Wednesday.
Usually, when there is a potential breach, an MP raises it with the Speaker, who decides whether there is a case to refer to the privileges committee.
Mr Crean said any decision was ultimately one for parliament.
“For those who argue it’s the Speaker, I wouldn’t have thought that was consistent with Mr Slipper … with him having stood aside,” he said.
“Parliament will make that decision.”
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