Ombudsman Allan Asher urged to quit over ‘collusion’ with Greens senator

Sarah Hanson-Young

Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young defends her decision to use questions in a Senate committee scripted by Ombudsman Allan Asher. Picture: Ray Strange
Source: The Australian

 




FORMER NSW premier Bob Carr has called on Commonwealth Ombudsman Allan Asher to resign after it emerged the watchdog wrote questions for Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young to ask him in a parliamentary committee.


“His behaviour is indefensible,” Mr Carr said of Mr Asher, who while admitting he did not take a “wise route” has stood by his conduct.

“It’s plain unethical for an Ombudsman to write questions for politicians grilling him at a Senate budget estimates committee,” Mr Carr wrote in his blog.

Mr Carr said the implication could be drawn that Mr Asher was “inclined to help the Green Party”, and criticised Senator Hanson-Young over her conduct.

“It is unethical for a senator to allow herself to be used that way. No argument,” Mr Carr said.

“Resign, Mr Asher.”

The criticism came as the Greens defended their decision to probe the Ombudsman in a committee hearing with scripted questions provided by him.

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Sarah Hanson-Young






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The Greens also stood by their attack on the Coalition for similar collusion with disgraced former Treasury official Godwin Grech.

Greens Leader Bob Brown said Mr Asher would have been denied the opportunity to appear before a Senate estimates committee in May without the Greens’ intervention.

Senator Brown said Mr Asher did a “good job” but was repressed by the government when he criticised the state of Australia’s immigration network.

Senator Brown defended Senator Hanson-Young’s decision to ask Mr Asher a prearranged question about the lack of government funding to his office.

“That’s standard practice,” Senator Brown said.

“It’s routine right across the parties that senators come in with set questions.”

The Greens’ leader said his criticism of Liberal senator Eric Abetz over his contact with Mr Grech before a 2009 Senate hearing into the Ozcar scandal still stood.

“The difference is we’ve got a statutory authority who ought to have been brought before a committee not being brought before a committee and we facilitated that,” Senator Brown said.

“The ombudsman is a statutory authority; Mr Grech was from the public service.”

Emails published in The Australian today show Mr Asher wrote to Senator Hanson-Young requesting that she ask him about a lack of funding to his office to pursue investigations into the immigration detention network.

Senator Hanson-Young obliged, producing evidence from Mr Asher that his immigration investigations were hindered a by lack of funds.

A subsequent media release from the Greens called for a boost to the Ombudsman’s $22 million budget.

In a statement today, Mr Asher defended his conduct but said in hindsight it was not the best course of action.

He said he had expected to be called before the Senate estimates committee in May but when that did not occur he took the “unorthodox approach” of briefing Senator Hanson-Young to bring his concerns to the attention of parliament and the public.

“This was not a wise route to take,” he said.

However Mr Asher said his was a statutory office, independent from both parliament and the executive. He was therefore free to disclose information to anyone about any issue he saw fit.

“The questions concerned administration of government policy and were not political in nature, as the answers provided to the committee clearly showed,” Mr Asher said.

The Ombudsman said he welcomed the prospect of a specific parliamentary committee or other accountability mechanism to review his work.

Senator Abetz took aim at the Greens, sayijng they had been exposed as hypocrites.

“You have a look and you have the rank hypocrisy of the Australian Greens, setting a standard for everybody else and then setting no standard for themselves,” Senator Abetz said.

“Today, the Australian Greens have been exposed yet again.”

Mr Grech, who had provided information to the opposition previously, had discussions with Senator Abetz before a Senate hearing in which he suggested a prime ministerial adviser had asked him to provide preferential treatment for a car dealer friend of then-prime minister Kevin Rudd.

He was later found to have faked an email from Rudd staffer Andrew Charlton, turning the tables on the Coalition who had attacked Mr Rudd based on his information.

Mr Asher, whose background is in consumer advocacy, was appointed Ombudsman in August last year and is due to serve until August 2015.

He earns around about $380,000 a year. The 2011-12 budget for his office was $22.47 million.

The Australian Public Service Commission, which oversees the conduct of federal bureaucrats, has declined to comment on the matter.

 

 

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9 Responses to “Ombudsman Allan Asher urged to quit over ‘collusion’ with Greens senator”

  1. Jael Kaye says:

    This is typical behaviour of Jews in seats of power. This entire farcical event, right back to Grech and Abets involvement, sees Jews involved at the highest levels of corruption within Government and the Public Service

  2. FAKE NEWS for the Zionist agenda Rabbi child molestor says:

    Unfortunately Jews run everything, even the drugs on our streets.
    Shame the Elite Jews created the Holocaust to eradicate the good and the weak.

  3. FAKE NEWS for the Zionist agenda Rabbi child molestor says:

    Oh look everyone, my very first hate mail:

    From: David [email protected]
    Subject: Anti-semitic remarks by you

    Message Body:

    Either you make a public apology for this hateful statement you have made about the Jews at http://www.jewishterrorism.com/ombudsman-allan-asher-urged-to-quit-over-collusion-with-greens-senator/ and have it posted permanently on your blog or you will find the Australian Human Rights Commission knocking on your door. Don’t just delete your anti-semitic rant – I have a screenshot to prove what you have said. Only a public acknowledgement of your lapse into anti-semitism will satisfy.

  4. FAKE NEWS for the Zionist agenda Rabbi child molestor says:

    Sorry David Schulberg http://au.linkedin.com/in/dschulberg but the truth and facts always shines through.

    This is not about being anti semetic, but about anti crime.

    I would be glad to send you plenty of information supporting my comments by American politicians like Ron Paul for one, and many other smart, honest people like Alex Jones, David Duke and more.

    David please enjoy listening to this

    Also enjoy watching this
    httpv:

    video

    play-sharp-fill

    &feature=player_embedded

    and another
    httpv:

    video

    play-sharp-fill

    another
    http://www.jewishterrorism.com/a-jewish-defector-warns-america-benjamin-freedman-speaks-on-zionism-%E2%80%93-part-i/

    David where is your apology to humanity for the jews sending jesus to his death… isn’t that anti semitism?
    (not that Jews, I mean Khazars were ever related by country to Jesus anyway)

    Where is your apology to humanity for the jewish nazi CIA, UN, NATO, UK, israel for war crimes and assassinations world wide.

    Where is your apology to humanity for all the false flag terror attacks including 911 created by the CIA.

    Where is your apology to humanity for jewish israel war crimes to usa people, palestine and many other citizens world wide… anti semitism?

    Where is your apology to humanity for jewish Adolf Hitler and his zionist Nazi’s – jewish Roosevelt – jewish Churchill – jewish Stalin – for all the war crimes against the world… anti semitism?

    David where is your apology to all the millions of people worldwide for jewih Hitler and his zionist nazis funded by the elite jews to create a holocaust and genecide worldwide to many countries… anti semetism?

    Where is your apology to humanity for the jewish financial scams and well executed depressions to our system for greed and power that many have suicided or are now suffering because of it.

    I can go on and on and on, but I’m sure you get the picture.
    So screw you David and all the propaganda and lies that you stand for.

    Folks if I die of a heart attack, an illness, car accident, by drowning, falling down stairs, or any accident from now till the end of my days, you will certainly have an idea of the group responsible.

    • Ron Goldman says:

      Chris
      You’ve probably gathered I’m one of the “tribe”, but let me tell you, I am extremely disappointed to see the hatred and threats projected at you by one of my own. It’s disgraceful, unconscionable and just downright wrong.

      I cannot and will not apologise for dschulberg, but let me tell you, not all Jews are painted (or tainted) with the same brush.

  5. FAKE NEWS for the Zionist agenda Rabbi child molestor says:

    Hello Ron, thank you for your kind words… and I totally agree with you.

  6. FAKE NEWS for the Zionist agenda Rabbi child molestor says:

    ——————————————————————–
    From: David Schulberg [email protected]
    Subject: Conciliation

    Message Body:
    You have been ignoring petitions that have been addressed to you from the Australian Human Rights Commission to conciliate over the personal, anti-semitic attacks that you have made against me. Why are you so unwilling to accept responsibility for your own actions?
    ——————————————————————-

    David Schulberg has contacted the Human Rights Commission against me.. Don’t you love how zionists use religion as a racist tool, against the people they hate.

    David you label yourself as a Semite, then you are the true racist, not me.
    David Schulberg you aint even a Jew, you are nothing more than a counterfeit jew with no bloodline to Abraham… You are a Khazar!

    http://www.jewishterrorism.com/ex-zionist-jew-says-the-truth-about-judaism/

    David, again my posts are about crime. I am not against Khazars (Jews)

    David, perhaps you may want to call israel aka CIA aka Al-Qaeda to come and bomb my place, it might make you feel better?

  7. Effie Mats says:

    p.s. WHAT IS THE HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION?? A NON PROFIT ORGANISATION LIKE THE ONES ACCUSED OF SUPPRESSING WAR CRIMES IN LIBYA AND SYRIA?
    Effie Mats
    Harris Park 2150 NSW

  8. FAKE NEWS for the Zionist agenda Rabbi child molestor says:

    agreed Effie, these human rights organisations just spread Zionist propaganda and wars against so called bad guys that Zionists have accused to excuse their war crimes.

    Perhaps David Schulberg would like to define what a Jew really is.

    Then perhaps a DNA test.

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