And now Michael Photios is linked to a push to drive out of Parliament the politician most likely to stop the gravy train that so profits some clients of his family's firms. Liberal MPs and members are OK with this? The collaborators think this does not make them look shabby? Kristina — a former Macquarie Bank analyst and KPMG adviser — has also created a new group called “Conservatives for Conservation” to champion environmental causes within the Coalition.
Kristina chairs the group, which we understand has secured the patronage of former Howard-era environment minister Robert Hill, former father-of-the-housePhilip Ruddock, the Liberals’ first federal female president Chris McDiven and, perhaps most significantly, former NSW premier Nick Greiner, the party’s all-but-official president-elect who will replace the outgoing Richard Alston in a fortnight at the Liberals’ federal council... Kristina and Michael Photios ... are now both officially lobbyists, acting on behalf of a range of energy clients diverse enough to span most of the Alan Finkel-sketched future.
Kristina is now working for Clean Energy Strategies, a new business founded in recent months by her husband and his business partners Nick Campbell and David Begg... Andy Vesey’s energy shop AGL is Kristina’s first client. AGL has announced a long-term plan to get out of coal and increase investment in solar and wind farms, thereby diverging from the views of respected energy analyst Tony Abbott.
Abbott has suggested the Turnbull Government compulsorily acquire AGL's Liddell coal-fired power station if AGL insists on closing it, thus risking electricity shortages and price hikes. Keeping Liddell going would cost AGL by keeping down prices for its renewable energy.
So how glad would AGL be to get Abbott out of politics? How hard is Photios working to do that? Let's hear from him.
(Thanks to reader Clinton.)
