A Queensland Liberal National Party press secretary is involved in a possible law case after man-handling a Seven news journalist in north Queensland.

I am a member of the ACT Branch of Labor, and I don’t know who the Scarlet Pimpernel (yesterday, “Tips and rumours”) is but his tip offs are B-U-L-L-S-H-I-T. He/she is obviously on a fishing expedition. The rumours are seriously W-R-O-N-G. The only things that he/she got right are the stuff that has already gone public. Maybe the Scarlet Pimpernel is a member of the ACT Liberal Party. That’s all I can say.

Why isn’t anyone reporting the departure of David Butorac from WIN? (Check today’s Media section).

A sportsperson who spends a lot of time out of the country, whose marital status seems to change each revolution of the news cycle, (with the same woman), who has children, who doubtless wants to minimise tax, and has gone to great pains to suggest to everybody (and the tax man) he is a womaniser, yet there is not one raised eyebrow from any journalist, not even subtle intelligence gathering to determine whether this individual with a record for fibbing and getting caught, might just be involved in a sham divorce/make up situation to avoid paying tax. Or perhaps the story is in a bottom drawer somewhere until said individual lets a certain newspaper down by going to a competitor. But that would be blackmail wouldn’t it.

What about the Multiplex Prime Property Fund and Nicholas Bolton’s resolution to wind up the fund? It appears that the resolution would return up to 19 cents to unit holders as opposed to the rights issue proposed and underwritten by Multiplex, which would leave the shares at $0.001. Multiplex knows that mum-and-dad unit holders who were conned into this initial $10k investment ($6k down and $4k in a following instalment) won’t participate in a rights issue where they are required to buy 178 shares to their current one share holding and they will acquire their stock for 0.1 cents.

Either way the fund has no future as the level of debt is beyond pay down but there is some value behind the debt with an NTA of $0.19. Multiplex are chasing the gap between debt and equity as is Nicholas Bolton. Difference is if Bolton succeeds then all unit holders succeed. How does an independent director, who is obliged to act in the interest of ALL unit holders, not vote to wind up the lemon vehicle and return the NTA to unit holders? Multiplex would receive a big chunk anyway considering they own 31%.

Does it have to chase the difference for itself? Its management fees also doubled to over $4m while producing a loss of $86m. The fund was designed in the heady days when everyone was copying the Macquarie model. Just suck it up, Multiplex, and return whatever value is left to unit holders.

This item for sale on eBay could possibly save the Australian Government $10 million! … and it looks great on a T-shirt!

Ruling (7) of the Returning Officer:

In response to a complaint received on 31 August from Onagh Bishop (“the Complainant”) against David Liubinas (“the Respondent”), the Returning Officer rules as follows:

  1. A case of harassment has not been made out against the Respondent in relation to his LOLCAT posting campaign.
  2. However, the joke has now gone far enough, and in light of his prior conduct the Respondent is warned that any further posting of LOLCATS and any further use of the word “LOLCAT” directed against his political opponents, by him or his associates, will be viewed as a serious case of harassment and treated accordingly.
  3. The Respondent’s attention is also particularly drawn to paragraph 7 of Ruling (3), issued yesterday.

Charles Richardson
Returning Officer
2.9.09