High-profile SA lawyer Nick Xenophon to defend Huawei Australia
Nick Xenophon has become the lawyer of Huawei Australia and says he doesn’t need to be on the foreign influence register. Senator Penny Wong disagrees.
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Penny Wong has bluntly dismissed Nick Xenophon’s claims he doesn’t need to be listed on Australia’s foreign influence register after taking a job representing Chinese-owned telecommunications company Huawei.
The former South Australian senator turned lawyer rejected any suggestion he should be on the register after it was announced his law firm Xenophon Davis had taken on the Huawei Australia as a client.
Mr Xenophon said he had received advice Huawei Australia was a locally-based company, was not deemed a foreign entity and did not come under Australia’s foreign influence laws.
The former senator added that if the Government deemed the company a foreign entity, he would comply with the law and register.
He also said his role did not involve lobbying politicians. “I’m not their lobbyist, I’m their lawyer,” he said.
But Senator Wong told The Advertiser Mr Xenophon should act in the “spirit” as well as the letter of the law.
“Nick certainly made himself sound like a lobbyist today,” Senator Wong said on Monday night.
“Nick Xenophon should make sure he acts consistent with the laws and the spirit of the laws that relate to lobbying and foreign interference.”
Senator Wong also said the role would impact Mr Xenophon’s former political party, now known as Centre Alliance.
“Nick Xenophon has taken a job where he will be paid to lobby for Huawei’s interests, while his disciple Rex Patrick keeps demanding a tougher stance on China,” she said, adding that the Senator must be “privately furious” at his former party leader for “costing him so much credibility”.
Under the current rules, former politicians only have to register if they conduct political lobbying on behalf of a foreign government or on behalf of foreign principals.
Xenophon Davis – a firm founded by Mr Xenophon and investigative journalist turned lawyer Mark Davis – will act as legal counsel to defend Huawei Australia “against false allegations that will unfairly cause it further economic loss and reputational damage”.
“We will scrutinise these claims, seek retractions of false allegations and seek legal redress wherever possible,” Mr Xenophon said.
“There will be no more free kicks against this company,” Mr Xenophon said.
“The misinformation about Huawei goes far beyond anything this government suggested when excluding it from the 5G rollout last year.”
Prime Minister Scott Morrison stood by the Government’s decision in 2018 to effectively block Huawei from building Australia’s 5G. Adelaide City Council’s super-fast internet network uses hardware from the technology company.
Huawei has also been black-listed in the United States and New Zealand.
Mr Xenophon said the only laws Huawei Australia was subject to were the laws of Australia.
“A good company is being destroyed and hundreds of high-skilled jobs in Australia are at risk – victims of false and totally unsubstantiated claims pouring out of ideologically-driven ‘think tanks’ who appear wilfully blind to the difference between the Chinese government and a private company,” he said.
“We are not here to defend the Chinese government or any of its actions. Huawei Australia is not owned by the Chinese government, nor it is a wing of the Chinese Communist Party or a front for any of its intelligence arms.”
Senator Patrick and Centre Alliance MP Rebekha Sharkie said Mr Xenophon was a private citizen, who could work for “whatever company he chooses”.
But Senator Patrick added that his former party leader might qualify as someone who needed to be on the register.
“I think he would qualify as a recent designated decision holder under the scheme, and he’ll have to just carefully consider whether or not Huawei is potentially subject to direction by the Chinese government.
“I guess he will have to but that’s something he will have to consider.”
When asked if Mr Xenophon’s new role threatened Centre Alliance’s credibility on transparency issues, foreign influence and interference, Senator Patrick said: “I’ve done more on that than Nick did in the past.”
“We look at each issue on the merits,” he said.
“I’ve made comments about the Chinese state hacking into the Australian Parliament, I’ve done that because it’s wrong.
“But I’m not anti-Chinese at all and neither is Nick.
“The whole point of the Foreign Influence Transparency Scheme (FITS) is that you simply declare who you work for so that people know.
“If there is a requirement for him to be on the scheme and he registers, he complies with the law. It is not unlawful to represent a company from any nation that is subject to state influence. But the FITS is to be transparent about it to avoid covert activities.”