According to the Australian, Julia Gillard is in hot water about her activities when she was a partner with law firm Slater and Gordon. The report says that Ms Gillard resigned because of an internal investigation into work she had done for a former boyfriend, Bruce Wilson, an alleged embezzler of Australian Workers Union funds.
Bruce Wilson
Paul Kelly, Editor-at-Large on The Australian raised the story with Ms Gillard on Sky News this morning but was careful not to put a direct allegation to her.
The PM described the story in The Australian as "malicious nonsense" and challenged Mr Kelly to name a specific allegation of any wrongdoing on her part. "I'm not going to get myself into a circumstance where I spend my time dealing with a circumstance that happened 17 years ago when people who are asking the questions are unable to even articulate what it is they say I did wrong" she said. "This is just nonsense and a distraction from the important work that I have to do as Prime Minister."
Paul Kelly
Nick Styant-Brown, a former equity partner of Slater and Gordon, told the Australian that the company's investigation included a secret interview with Ms Gillard on 11 September 1995. It was "recorded and transcribed" and in it, Ms Gillard said she could not categorically rule out that she had personally benefited from union funds in the renovation of her Melbourne home.
Larry Pickering has been relentless in his pursuit of this matter and Alan Jones' radio interview with sacked 2UE broadcaster Michael Smith is a real concern. It seems that this story has been on a slow boil for months and according to some, won't be going away.
For any person who has been a partner in a professional practice, be it a legal firm or an accounting firm, we recognise what Gillard's departure from Slater & Gordon represented.
ReplyDeleteFirms don't sack partners. They request partners' resignations, which is not a matter of choice. It only happens in circumstances in which the firm considers it to be very serious e.g. illegal activity, serious irregularities, unethical behaviour, professional misconduct, etc.
In the case of Julia Gillard, it clearly had to be a serious concern. After all, one moment she claimed she was not leaving Slater & Gordon. Within a month she resigns. Why?
What makes this matter worse is her association with the dirty rotten scandal that involves serious fraud, which to date has not been properly investigated. If that is not bizarre, what is?
Julia Gillard must make a full and frank statement to the Parliament... including all the sordid details. Sooner or later, its all going to be revealed, in any case.