By Kishor Napier-Raman and Noel Towell
The war in the Middle East hasn’t stopped Australian politicians and business types from defying travel advice and making trips to Israel.
Last week, former treasurer Josh Frydenberg returned from leading a group of media and business figures. And next month, high-profile corporate lawyer Jeremy Leibler, president of the Zionist Federation of Australia, will host a delegation to Israel, led by former Victorian Labor premier Dan Andrews and new NSW Liberal senator Dave Sharma. It’s always charming to see bipartisanship in action.
We hear the trip will focus largely on Israel’s technology sector, but the delegation will also visit kibbutzes in the country’s south which were targeted by Hamas during the October 7 terrorist attacks, and meet high-profile political leaders including President Isaac Herzog.
Andrews has kept a fairly low profile since his shock decision to quit politics last year, but gave a speech at a St Kilda synagogue in November to reaffirm his support for Israel and the local Jewish community as the conflict with Hamas intensified.
Sharma is a one-term member for Wentworth and a former ambassador to Israel, and his support for the country helped secure a surprise victory during a hotly contested Senate preselection contest late last year.
It isn’t the first time Leibler has taken an influential delegation to Israel. In 2019, he travelled there with former prime minister John Howard, his foreign minister Alexander Downer, ex-Labor treasurer Wayne Swan, ALP communications minister turned lobbyist Stephen Conroy and short-lived Liberal leader Brendan Nelson.
WHERE THERE’S A WILL
The Coalition under Peter Dutton is hoping to win the hearts and minds of young voters through cool ideas like nuclear power and deporting juvenile criminals to the outback.
And in NSW, the local division is demonstrating its rich understanding of the youth by offering Young Liberals an online will service. Again.
CBD reported last year that the party was spruiking a deal with online estate planner Safewill to its junior wing. That sweetheart deal continues, with Young Liberals receiving a rather bizarre email in their inboxes on Thursday morning.
“Young Liberals are the future of the party but that does not make you a morning person,” the message from the party’s head of generosity Wendy Farrow.
The tortured metaphor was soon explained.
“Did you know the percentage of Aussies who skip breakfast at least once a week is the same percentage of Aussies who do not know where to start with writing a will?” That’s 40 per cent, apparently.
“We may not get you coffee or toast, but I’m sharing a free offer to help you get your affairs in order.”
How do you do fellow kids?
COOKER CONFERENCE
CBD was toiling away over these modest lines at the weekend, but our hearts were very much in Albury, jewel of the Murray, where a gathering was taking place that really did have something for everyone.
So whether you detest climate change action, ancient COVID-19 restrictions, or the defeated Indigenous Voice to parliament, and had $250 to spare for the cheapest seats, you would have been among your tribe at last weekend’s “epic” Triple Conference.
The event, described as “pro-human, pro-freedom and pro-prosperity” brought together a motley crew of conservative thought leaders. Still riding high from defeating Anthony Albanese’s Voice referendum last year were the headliners – Nyunggai Warren Mundine and his controversial campaign colleague Gary Johns, the former Keating-era Labor minister who has re-purposed their Recognise a Better Way outfit into a charity called Close the Gap Research.
“Friedman Friday”, as the organisers termed it, was devoted to some of Australian libertarianism’s leading lights, including our two silliest senators, Ralph Babet (Clive Palmer’s $110 million man) and One Nation’s Malcolm Roberts. Roberts was back for more on “Church and State Saturday”.
Perhaps less well-known – and that’s an injustice – former Qantas pilot Graham Hood, who insists he was sacked by the airline for refusing a vaccination, was also on the bill.
Graham was the official spokesman for a protest movement that called for 5 million Australians to descend on Canberra in early 2022. About 1000 showed up, but we feel sure that Graham pulled a decent crowd at the weekend.
And if climate, um, scepticism is your bag, what about Saturday night’s Nyet Zero – geddit? – black tie gala dinner designed to launch a broader pushback against the idea of carbon neutrality in all its nefarious forms. It all sounds a hoot.
Christopher Pyne’s firm launched its Melbourne office last week, attracting some familiar faces. From left: Gillon McLachlan, Dave Feeney, Pyne and Will Clancy.Credit: Joe Benke
PYNE AND DANDY
Former defence minister Christopher Pyne has brought the same hyper-competitive approach he had in politics to his new life as lobbyist. The professional South Australian was quick to note that his Pyne and Partners operation has more clients listed than any other outfit on the official register of lobbyists.
And he managed to attract a decent crowd last week for the launch of P&P’s new Melbourne offices, where former AFL boss Gillon McLachlan and television personality Eddie McGuire were spotted rubbing shoulders with Labor MP Julian Hill, senator Raff Ciccone and former senator and MP David Feeney – who Pyne claims to have “rehabilitated”.
From the other side of the aisle were former Liberal federal director Brian Loughnane (better known as Mr Peta Credlin), ex-speaker Tony Smith, and rookie MPs Zoe McKenzie and Keith Wolahan.
Addressing the friends of Pyne, Hill recalled some sage advice he’d been given as a newbie MP about dealing with lobbyists.
You’ve got to learn how to eat their free food, drink their free drinks and then tell them to “f--- off”, the Labor MP told the room.