Last-minute millions to spark racing probe

QUESTIONS: Former treasurer Andrew Fraser, and how The Courier-Mail has broken the key stories into the administration of Racing Queensland. Source: The Courier-Mail

A DECISION by Anna Bligh's government to transfer $20 million two days before the Labor administration went into caretaker mode is among events set to spark a commission of inquiry into Queensland's racing industry.

The Courier-Mail has learnt of two key incidents involving more than $100 million that have raised serious questions about the former administration of the racing industry.

The Courier-Mail last night learnt that the Newman Government was investigating former Treasurer Andrew Fraser's decision to approve the transfer of $20 million into Racing Queensland Limited's trust account for infrastructure projects.

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The Government is seeking details on whether Mr Fraser ignored advice from Treasury on the business cases for RQL infrastructure projects.

The transfer occurred in February 2012, two days before the caretaker mode applied ahead of Labor's landslide election loss.

The Newman Government is also looking into a decision by four of RQL's then five directors to allow Tatts Group to retain almost $90 million of fees that had been earmarked for the racing industry.

The latest twist comes as Campbell Newman's Government ponders its options in addressing the growing scandal surrounding the industry's previous leadership.

QUESTIONS: ALP powerbroker Bill Ludwig and how The Courier-Mail has broken the key stories into the administration of Racing Queensland.

The Courier-Mail understands the government is looking at either a full Commission of Inquiry or a Parliamentary Inquiry into the administration of the industry under the board chaired by Labor-aligned former chairman Bob Bentley and including Labor powerbroker and longtime union boss Bill Ludwig.

The Government is expected to lean towards a commission of inquiry which would have greater powers.

One of the key matters is the process used for approving the $20 million payment and whether questions had been raised by Treasury officials over whether it should go ahead.

Rules blocking access to briefing papers provided to the previous government is hampering their investigation.

Mr Fraser last night told The Courier-Mail: "The decision to provide the money to (RQL) was announced in the Budget and all decisions were made in accordance with Treasury advice."

Today, he urged the release of a briefing note which he says make legitimate the$20 million transfer two days before the government went into caretaker mode last year.

Last November, The Courier-Mail revealed that RQL had awarded $158 million worth of contracts to Contour Consulting Engineers, based on the Sunshine Coast, for upgrades to regional racetracks and facilities. Only one of more than 30 projects went to tender.

But the Newman Government, less than a month into its tenure, brought the program to a halt by imposing a freeze on Racing Queensland making payments above $20,000 without approval.

A forensic audit by Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu, delivered to the Government this week, has recommended the Crime and Misconduct Commission and the State Auditor-General conduct a full inquiry into the contract, which was found to be up to 40 per cent more expensive than those offered by other firms.

The Bentley-led board was overhauled and replaced as the Newman Government sought to implement a new racing structure.

Investigations by The Courier-Mail last year have also revealed that RQL board had approved golden handshakes of more than $1 million to four executives in the event that they resigned before the body was dismantled by the new government.

That decision has been the subject of an Australian Securities and Investments Commission investigation.

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Airport tangle delays millions

MORE than five million domestic passengers flying in or out of Sydney had their flights cancelled or delayed last year as the airport struggled to cope with increasing air traffic.

The decline in on-time performance occurred despite a slow down in the volume of domestic passengers to Sydney, with more travelling to Brisbane and Melbourne.

The national snapshot of air travel by the Bureau of Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Economics comes ahead of the federal government's decision on the viability of a second airport at Wilton.

The report found on-time departures at Sydney Airport were below the national average, with only 80.5 per cent of flights departing on time compared with 84.7 per cent for Melbourne and 82 per cent for Brisbane. Of those passengers delayed, 2.8 million were late arriving into Sydney while 2.4 million faced a delayed departure.

On-time performance has continued to decline, with figures for the first two months of this year showing arrival and departure times in Sydney were worse than in the same period last year.

Federal Infrastructure Minister Anthony Albanese said passengers in and out of Sydney could expect further delays and cancellations as Kingsford-Smith grappled to cope with air traffic gridlock.

Mr Albanese said a second airport was critical for Sydney to be able to meet both domestic and international demand. "The reality is that without extra aviation capacity through a second airport, the number of people who are delayed because of congestion at Sydney Airport will only grow," he said.

"These facts highlight both the economic impact and the consequences for airlines and passengers if they can't get access to Sydney in the future.

"Sydney needs a second airport sooner rather than later to handle growing domestic and international demand and create jobs in the economy."

The figures showed cancellations to be highest on the Canberra to Sydney route, with almost 5 per cent of flights not operating.

Passengers were most likely to face a delayed flight out of Ballina, while on-time arrival performance was worst flying in to Port Macquarie.

The number of domestic passengers grew by 4 per cent to 56 million last year, with the number of flights also rising 4.5 per cent to 606,736.

The nation's busiest route - Melbourne to Sydney - was even busier last year with more than eight million passengers, an increase of 4.3 per cent. The next most congested route was Brisbane to Sydney, although traveller numbers dropped by 0.4 per cent to 4.4 million passengers.

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Millions of prawns cover Chile beach

Millions of dead prawns have washed ashore on a three-kilometre stretch of beach in Chile. The cause is not yet known, but locals suspect changing ocean currents or heat from a nearby thermoelectric plant. Picture: AP Photo/Chile's Public Affairs office Source: AP

MILLIONS of small prawns became stranded on a beach in southern Chile this week, carpeting a three-kilometre strand in red, local fishermen and police said.

The fishermen in the Coronel area, some 500 kilometres south of Santiago, began noticing something out of the ordinary at the beginning of the week.

There were giant "red spots" appearing just off the shore, said fishermen union president Juan Gutierrez.

By Tuesday, the red mass had moved to land.

"Millions of prawns were stranded on the beach," a shocked Mr Gutierrez said.

"I've been a fisherman 39 years and have never seen anything like it before."

Mr Gutierrez added that he's seen more prawns clumping near the shoreline, indicating another mass stranding could happen.

As residents removed the thick red spread of prawns, each a centimetre or smaller, civil police have also arrived to take samples and investigate the cause of this unusual phenomenon.

They will be looking to see "whether there was any trace or element" in the shrimp that would explain why they stranded en masse.

They are also working to determine conditions in the Coronel Bay, including its "temperature, electrical conductivity, and, especially, oxygen," environmental crimes investigator Victor Casanova told local media.

So far, the cause of the event is unknown. Some fishermen are blaming a change in ocean currents, while others suggest the culprit is a local coal-fired thermoelectric plant that uses seawater as a coolant.
 

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