Margo Kingston

Margo Kingston

Co-publisher and editor-in-chief at No Fibs
Margo Kingston is a retired Australian journalist and climate change activist. She is best known for her stint as Phillip Adams’ ‘Canberra Babylon’ contributor and her work at The Sydney Morning Herald and #Webdiary. Since 2012, Kingston has been a citizen journalist, reporting and commenting on Australian politics via Twitter and No Fibs.
Margo Kingston
From Margo: If an #IndependentsDay candidate would like to write a response from her or his seat’s point of view No Fibs would like to publish it. Let’s discuss :-)

Commonwealth Electoral Amendment (Cleaning up Political Donations) Bill 2022

THANK YOU, MR Speaker. I second this bill and commend the Member for Clark its introduction.

As an independent, transparency and integrity are at the heart of what drives me and the people who put me here.

Political access and influence should never be for sale.

I am proud to disclose the names and amount of every single donation I receive above $1,000 every financial quarter.

That includes smaller cumulative donations from the same person that together total over $1,000.

I am also committed to disclosing the names of anyone who cumulatively donates more than the Australian Electoral Commission threshold of $14,500 within five business days.

This bill would hold us all to a similar standard.

The publication of AEC returns earlier this month show how urgently we need to reform political donations laws.

Recent analysis from the Centre for Public Integrity found that over $1 billion in financial contributions, or about 35 per cent of all donations going to the major parties, can from unknown sources in the past two decades.

What’s more concerning is that Australians will have to go to the ballot box none the wiser on what donations the major parties have received since they filed their returns.

I thank the Member for Clark again for his leadership and I commend this bill to the House.

Andrew Wilkie’s speech to Parliament.

Andrew Wilkies website: Andrew introduces political donations reform bill

The Bill

Commonwealth Electoral Amendment (Cleaning up Political Donations) Bill 2022

Related: SPEECH – Andrew Wilkie’s Bill to ‘clean up political donations’ #IndependentsDay