THE AGE http://www.theage.com.au/daily/990908/news/news14.html September 8, 1999 Reveal Reith letter: judge By PAUL ROBINSON WORKPLACE EDITOR A Federal Court judge has compared allegations against the federal employment advocate to a senior police officer being accused of corruption. Justice Shane Marshall told the court that allegations against Mr Jonathan Hamberger by the Construction, Mining, Forestry and Energy Union were extremely serious. The union claims that Mr Hamberger tried to coerce it, and the building company, Multiplex, to alter a labor agreement negotiated in May for the Federation Square project. Justice Marshall said: ``The proceeding before the court involves a very serious allegation of what is contended to be a gross abuse of power by a very senior public official; that is, that he has allegedly engaged in the very conduct which it is his duty to seek to prohibit. It is analogous to a proceeding in which a corruption claim is made against a senior police officer.'' Justice Marshall had been asked to release a letter written by the Workplace Relations Minister, Mr Peter Reith, to the Prime Minister, Mr John Howard, believed to be about the Federation Square issue. Mr Hamberger is also said to have a copy of the letter. Four months ago, the construction and forestry union alleged that Mr Reith and his agents threatened to withhold $50million in federal funding for the $250 million project unless there were changes to the agreement. Counsel for the Federal Government, Dr Gavin Griffith, QC, opposed releasing the Reith letter, arguing that it was confidential. Counsel for the union, Ms Rachel Doyle, said the letter was created outside Cabinet and should be released. She said it could reveal that Mr Reith directed Mr Hamberger. Justice Marshall said it was hard to assess the competing legal claims without seeing the document. ``It may transpire that the court is none the wiser after inspection, but anything that may assist the resolution of the requisite balancing process in what is a most difficult issue is likely to be of some assistance.'' He ordered the letter to be produced in court within 21 days. ************************************************************************* This posting is provided to the individual members of this group without permission from the copyright owner for purposes of criticism, comment, scholarship and research under the "fair use" provisions of the Federal copyright laws and it may not be distributed further without permission of the copyright owner, except for "fair use." Leftlink - Australia's Broad Left Mailing List mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.alexia.net.au/~www/mhutton/index.html Sponsored by Melbourne's New International Bookshop Subscribe: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?Body=subscribe%20leftlink Unsubscribe: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?Body=unsubscribe%20leftlink
