The grant to the Great Barrier Reef Foundation was the largest donation of taxpayers’ money to a private foundation in history. This was granted without a tender process and no clear plan on how the money would be spent. In fact, the Foundation didn’t even apply for the grant. Its director described the decision as “like winning Lotto”.
The National Audit Office said the grant did not comply with transparency rules.
As Labor’s Tony Burke said to Insiders: “A small foundation that employs six people walks into a meeting with the Prime Minister and having not asked for any money, walks away with a commitment of nearly half a billion dollars to do core work that previously had always been done by the department of the environment”.
Links:
First Dog explains it best (with pictures): https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/aug/07/reefgate-part-two-the-plot-and-the-water-thickens-starring-brenda-the-antifa-penguin
PM personally approved $443m – https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2018/jul/30/malcolm-turnbull-present-when-443-million-dollars-offered-to-small-group-without-tender-inquiry-hears
Update July 2020 – GBR Foundation raises just $21m of $357m target – https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/jul/11/a-mockery-great-barrier-reef-foundation-raises-just-21m-of-357m-target
GBR Foundation: https://www.barrierreef.org/
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