South Australian govt fails to regulate nuclear lobbysits, fails to address corruption issues
Schacht lobbied Rann for miner
*Michael Owen, SA political reporter | August 20, 2009 The Australian“………………..The Rann government is under pressure because of its lack of action to regulate the activities of lobbyists and establish a lobbyists’ register, as the Rudd government and other states have done.
Adding to that pressure has been the Premier’s refusal to establish an independent commission against corruption, as every other state except Victoria has done, in the wake of events in Queensland.
Yesterday’s revelations about the extent of lobbying by Mr Schacht, a Keating government minister and former ALP state secretary, comes before Marathon’s mining exploration licence expires on October 10, and as the government prepares to consider lifting a drilling ban imposed in February last year.
The indefinite suspension on drilling came after the company was caught in December 2007 dumping uranium drilling waste in the environmentally sensitive Arkaroola Wilderness Sanctuary, 700km north of Adelaide.
A month later, Mr Schacht was appointed to the company’s board. Marathon aims to develop its Mount Gee uranium project in the northern Flinders Ranges, which is estimated to contain more than 40 million tonnes of uranium ore.
Conservationists and tourist operators want Marathon barred from the sanctuary and its drill sites at Mount Gee, a listed geological monument.
Company insiders said Mr Schacht had lobbied Mr Holloway and Mr Rann on behalf of the company during trips with them to China, and in private meetings, as the state government stood to reap hundreds of millions of dollars in royalties.
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