Clive Palmer’s former allies turn on him

CLIVE Palmer’s once-loyal allies are turning on him in droves as new details emerge about his troubled businesses.

CLIVE Palmer’s once-loyal employees are turning on him as new details emerge about his troubled businesses.

The federal MP is the subject of a Four Corners investigation that has interviewed political players, former colleagues and sacked workers at the now-closed Queensland Nickel refinery in Townsville. Many are speaking out for the first time.

“The broader aim of the story was to ask questions about what motivates Clive Palmer,” Four Corners reporter Hayden Cooper told news.com.au.

While there were a variety of responses, the one that came up the most was: “Clive Palmer motivates Clive Palmer.”

“He is driven by ego, money and power,” Cooper said. “We wanted this story to investigate the way he operates in the grey area of politics and business ... the way his business boosts his political career, and his political career boosts his business.”

Former Palmer United Party senator Glenn Lazarus, who has since left the party, also speaks out — but he said he understood why others were scared to do the same.

“I think he’s got a pretty good reputation, wanting to sue everybody,” Senator Lazarus said of Mr Palmer.

“He’s an enigma. He’s an individual let me tell you. They broke the mould when Clive was made.”

Mr Palmer’s support in his electorate of Fairfax has plummeted from a primary vote of 26.5 per cent in 2013, to just two per cent in a Galaxy poll taken in January. The poll was conducted just six days after his nickel refinery started sacking hundreds of workers.

Although Mr Palmer stood down from his formal role at the refinery when he was elected as a MP in 2013, Four Corners will reveal documents showing he remained heavily involved in spending decisions.

Most of the spending decisions were outlined in emails from Mr Palmer’s alias, Terry Smith.

Cooper said documents indicated Mr Palmer kept ultimate control, despite his comments that he was just one member of the refinery’s expenditure committee.

“We’ve been able to ascertain that Mr Palmer had final approval of spending over $500 and he had a veto right,” Cooper said. “If he didn’t give the all clear, it didn’t happen.”

Federal Kennedy MP Bob Katter joined sacked Queensland Nickel workers at a meeting in Townsville, Queensland. Picture: Cameron Laird/The Australian

Authorities are also investigating whether Mr Palmer was acting as a shadow director of Queensland Nickel.

“There was spending while he was not listed as a director of Queensland Nickel,” Cooper said. “The money was coming out of Queensland Nickel and going into other Palmer businesses.”

Some of these payments were made in the past year and included payments to Palmer interests such as a $2.5 million transfer to Mineralogy and $700,000 donation to the Club de Madrid, a favoured foreign think tank that includes former world leaders.

“These sort of payments would be sure to upset workers, especially as they are owed a lot of money in redundancy payments,” Cooper said.

Cooper said there were serious questions about who should take responsibility for worker entitlements. At this stage it’s most likely that the federal government will have to pick up the tab.

Mr Palmer has publicly slammed the program in a Facebook post saying that he had offered to do a live interview but this had been refused.

He also accused Four Corners of being uninterested in the truth, and warned the allegations were damaging.

Media statement Four Corners Needs to Give Clive Palmer a Fair Go Clive Palmer has offered to appear on Four Corners...

Posted by Clive Palmer on Saturday, April 9, 2016

But Cooper has a different version of events, saying “we have been trying to convince him since early February to do an interview”.

“At first he was noncommittal then he told me he would not be part of the program,” he said of Mr Palmer.

Weeks later, Mr Palmer offered to do a live interview but Cooper said this was not possible as Four Corners does not air live.

“We have tried repeatedly to get Clive to sit down with us, and to include his responses and point of view. We have sent him a long list of 30 questions and he has failed to respond.

“The only recent contact we’ve had is from his lawyers who threatened legal action.”

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission and Queensland Nickel’s administrators are investigating whether Mr Palmer acted as a shadow director before his company ran into trouble.

But Mr Palmer has since re-entered the nickel venture. A new Palmer-owned entity, Queensland Nickel Sales, has taken over from administrators and is managing the Townsville refinery with a view to resuming operations from July.

The Queensland Nickel refinery in Townsville owned by MP Clive Palmer.

— With AAP

Four Corners airs tonight at 8.30pm on ABC TV.