There
is an old cliché that classically applied to debt-laden entrepreneurs like Alan
Bond that went something like, “if you owe the bank $100,000 and can’t pay you
have a problem but if you owe the bank $100,000,000 and can’t pay then the bank
has a problem.” It seems like the cliché also holds true in relation to federal
offences and the prosecution policy of the Commonwealth DPP, Damian Bugg.

As
noted by Chris Seage and Peter Faris in Crikey, there seems to be no valid reason for the
DPP not to prosecute Rich 200 member and alleged tax rorter, Rob Gerard. I’ll bet
plenty of people have been charged and prosecuted for far less complex and
devious tax avoidance schemes (which don’t involve
Caribbean
islands) for paltry sums under $100,000.

This
isn’t the first time that Damian Bugg has failed to launch a prosecution. Bugg
also refused to prosecute the insider-trading funnyman, Steve Vizard, after he was caught with his finger
in the till (three times). Like Gerard, Vizard has significant political and
social connections, as well as a pretty hefty bank balance. (Bugg’s reasoning for not prosecuting Vizard basically rested
on the fact that Vizard’s accountant refused to sign a witness statement. It
must have slipped Bugg’s mind that he could have
actually prosecuted, or at least threatened to prosecute the
accountant.)

The
actions of Bugg almost seem to be a direct contradiction of public attorneys in
the United
States
who favour high-profile public prosecutions as a means of future political gain
(Rudy Giuliani and New
York
governor candidate, Elliot Spitzer are prime examples). However, for
Bugg, it seems like going after the big fish like Vizard or Gerard is just too
hard. It is much easier to stick it to old ladies claiming two
pensions.

It
seems like the new policy of the DPP is something like, “if you rort the
Australian public out of $10,000 you have a problem, however, if you evade $100
million worth of tax you’ll still be able to go to the Melbourne Club next
year.”