Former prime minister Malcolm Turnbull and his wife Lucy have long been supporters of the Randwick and Westmead Children’s Hospitals. So it was no surprise to hear the couple donated in the region of $100,000 to the Sydney Children’s Hospital Foundation Lunar New Year gala over the weekend.
More intriguing, at least to CBD, was the competitive bidding that took place to secure an exclusive kayak tour on Sydney Harbour with the Prince of Point Piper.
The prize went for $80,000 at the auction, hosted by Monika Tu, of Luxe Listings fame. We hear the losing bidder was so bummed to miss out on some one-on-one time with Turnbull they approached Tu at the function and asked if the former PM would do them the honour of hosting a second kayak tour, for another $80,000.
All up, we’re told the foundation, run by former NSW premier Kristina Keneally as CEO, raised some $2.8 million to support projects like cancer treatment trials and new AI tools for rare diseases.
“The best auction prizes are often money-can’t-buy experiences – and kayaking with Malcolm obviously delivers that in spades,” Keneally said when reached by CBD on Tuesday. “From a foundation perspective, we were delighted by the Turnbulls’ generosity of time – and their own donation – it will make such a difference for sick kids in hospital.”
But not everyone can command the same figures. It was only a year or two ago that one of the prizes auctioned off at a similar gala event run by the foundation was a dinner with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese. On that occasion, Albanese struggled to crack $100,000.
Who’d have thought Turnbull would enjoy such lasting popularity. Well, at least outside the Liberal Party.
TikTok deepens its Labor bench
Every so often, we get to witness a picture-perfect illustration of the revolving door between public office and the multibillion-dollar public affairs industry built around it, in all of its glory.
Such was the case when TikTok mounted a full court lobbying press last year, when it was looking like the platform’s competitor, YouTube, may get an exemption from the government’s under-16 teen social media ban. Of course, the government later walked back the carve-out, handing TikTok a massive win.
So when TikTok was on the hunt for a new boss for its public policy operation last year, we couldn’t blame the platform for turning to yet another former Labor comrade.
Among the most recent Labor formers to arrive at the platform was Jessika Lofstedt, a former Albo adviser, who joined the company from PsiQuantum late last year to head up TikTok’s policy shop. She arrived in the thick of a policy agenda that includes the under-16s social media ban, and, more recently, data centres. TikTok declined to comment.
Lofstedt, of course, isn’t alone. The ByteDance-controlled video giant also has Sabina Husic among its ranks, a socialist brawler known for her time working in the Daniel Andrews government, who also served a stint advising Albo and is the sister of Labor MP Ed Husic.
She has taken the lead on TikTok’s policy work after the platform’s policy boss Ella Woods-Joyce left around the time Labor’s under-16 social media ban took effect last year. We hear Lofstedt has since poached erstwhile Coalition staffer Simon Edwards from Amazon Web Services, who will bring balance to a team that also includes former Coalition staffer Tom Fardoulys. Together, the boys make up the platform’s token Tories.
ABC’s Laura Tingle stranded amid Middle East conflict
With flights cancelled to and from the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Israel and Bahrain, countless Australians were left stuck in the Middle East this week following the eruption of conflict in the region after Israel and the US launched strikes on Iran over the weekend.
Among them was the ABC’s global affairs editor Laura Tingle. The ABC said it is monitoring official advice from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade as the situation evolves, but did not comment specifically on the steps it is taking to support Tingle and other staff in the region.
“Just in the last few minutes, there’s been some very big thuds just outside the building where I am now, which is down near Palm Island, that very famous land reclamation development here in Dubai,” Tingle told the ABC’s PM show on Monday, hosted by Samantha Donovan.
The ABC has a Middle East bureau in Jerusalem, but declined to confirm the number of staff it has based in the region.
“The ABC is monitoring the official advice from DFAT. We have well-established protocols in place for the safety of our international teams. Obviously, it’s an evolving situation and story, and in terms of travel we’re adapting to circumstances. Our Middle East bureau is based in Jerusalem and we have deployed other resources to support the coverage.”
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