| Joe Tripodi | |
|---|---|
| Member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly for Fairfield |
|
| In office 25 March 1995 – 26 March 2011 |
|
| Preceded by | Geoff Irwin |
| Succeeded by | Guy Zangari |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Joseph Guerino Tripodi 25 November 1967 Fairfield, New South Wales |
| Nationality | Australia |
| Political party | Australian Labor Party |
| Relations | Angela D'Amore (sister-in-law) |
| Alma mater | University of Sydney |
| Occupation | Economist and union organiser |
Joseph Guerino "Joe" Tripodi (born 25 November 1967), a former Australian politician, was a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly representing the electorate of Fairfield for the Australian Labor Party between 1995 and 2011. He was Minister for Finance, Infrastructure, Regulatory Reform, Ports and Waterways under former Premier Nathan Rees.[1] He was a controversial figure during his time in politics, known as a factional boss,[2] within the NSW Labor Right whose Terrigals sub-faction has twice dumped the sitting Labor Premier during 2007 and 2010. On 11 November 2010, he announced his decision to not contest the 2011 state election.[3]
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Tripodi was born in 1967 and raised in Fairfield, New South Wales, the eldest of four children to Italian migrants Angelo and Iolanda,[4] receiving his early years of education at Westfields High School, West Fairfield.[5] He graduated with a Bachelor of Economics (Hons) from the University of Sydney and became an economist with the Reserve Bank of Australia from 1989 to 1991. At age 16, Tripodi joined the Labor Party and served as State Secretary of NSW Young Labor,[5] later becoming an official with the NSW Labor Council from 1993 to 1995.[6]
In 1995, Tripodi was elected to the New South Wales Legislative Assembly, representing the western Sydney electorate of Fairfield for Labor.
Prior to entering the ministry Tripodi was the Chairman of the Legislative Assembly Public Accounts Committee. He was the Minister for Housing from February to August 2005, when he became Minister for Roads. In September 2005, he was chased and grabbed on the floor of the Assembly by National Party member Andrew Fraser, apparently in relation to a road funding issue.[7] In February 2006, he became Minister for Energy, Minister for Ports and Waterways and Minister Assisting the Treasurer on Business and Economic Regulatory Reform.[6] In April 2007, he became Minister for Small Business, Regulatory Reform, Ports and Waterways.[6]
In 2007, former premier Bob Carr was critical of Tripodi's performance as waterways minister with regard to his management of harbour development.[8]
In 2009, it was reported that Tripodi had proposed electricity industry reform in NSW that would result in the three state-owned retailers being sold off to private enterprise and the sale of long-term "gentrader" contracts.[9]
Along with Eddie Obeid, Tripodi is seen as a factional leader of a sub-faction known informally as "the Terrigals".[10] He and Obeid have been held responsible for ending the hopes of loyal Terrigal Carl Scully of becoming NSW Premier in 2005 following the resignation of Bob Carr. Tripodi and Obeid reportedly walked into Scully's office and informed him that they had decided to support then Health Minister Morris Iemma instead.[10] This has since been described as "one of the greatest acts of bastardry of all time".[10] Iemma went on to become Premier and win the 2007 NSW elections however in 2008 Tripodi and Obeid withdrew their support for Iemma, forcing Iemma to resign from the NSW Premiership.[11]
On 8 September 2008 Iemma's successor Nathan Rees promoted Tripodi to the Finance and Infrastructure portfolios, in addition to his previous responsibilities of Ports and Waterways, and Regulatory Reform.[12] On 15 November 2009 Rees dumped Tripodi from the front bench for allegedly plotting to install former Health Minister John Della Bosca as Premier; Rees used new special powers granted to him at the NSW Labor Party State Conference the day before, which gave him authority to choose who serves on the Labor front bench instead of the State Parliamentary Labor Party.[1] Soon afterwards, Tripodi enacted revenge on Rees by organising a petition calling for a special caucus meeting to enable a leadership challenge.[13] This resulted in Rees on 3 December 2009 stating that "Should I not be Premier by the end of this day, let there be no doubt in the community's mind, no doubt, that any challenger will be a puppet of Eddie Obeid and Joe Tripodi".[14] Rees that day subsequently lost the leadership and Premiership to Kristina Keneally.
His early career was marked by a series of public allegations. In October 2000, he was accused of sexually assaulting an Australian Democrats staffer at a New South Wales Parliament House function the month before.[15] The complainant made an initial statement to the NSW Police, but withdrew it the following day. It was later alleged that one of the police officers who investigated the original complaint was a member of Tripodi's branch of the ALP.
In 2001, the manager of a committee chaired by Tripodi took out an apprehended violence order (AVO) against the MP after he publicly opposed a development application by her husband for a tavern opposite a primary school in Tripodi's electorate.[16] The AVO was withdrawn shortly afterward.
Tripodi was also accused of branch stacking. In 1996, it was reported that he paid almost $7,000 in cash to the ALP head office to fund a "branch stack".[17]
Tripodi was implicated in the Orange Grove affair, but subsequently cleared by the Independent Commission Against Corruption in 2005.[18]
Whilst Minister for Roads, Tripodi was chased and grabbed by Coffs Harbour local member Andrew Fraser on the floor of Parliament in September 2005, apparently in relation to a lack of funding for the main roads, including the Pacific Highway in Coffs Harbour.[19] Fraser apologised to Parliament and Tripodi. It was revealed that alcohol may have influenced Fraser's rage.[20]
Coalition campaign advertising ahead of the 2007 election identified Tripodi—along with Treasurer Michael Costa and Planning Minister Frank Sartor—as one of the government's least popular. Independent MPs indicated that, in the event of a hung parliament, they would not support a minority Labor government in which Tripodi remained a minister.[21]
During an ICAC investigation into Wollongong City Council in 2008, it was revealed that a former Council officer against whom corruption allegations had been made was a personal friend of Tripodi's and had subsequently appointed to a senior position in a department in his portfolio [22][23] Tripodi claimed the appointment had been "at arm's length" from him, and on 3 March 2008 the ICAC indicated there was no evidence that would sustain an investigation.[24] This was criticised by Opposition Leader Barry O'Farrell who stated that the community would feel let down by the ICAC's decision.[24]
Tripodi's announcement of his decision to not contest the March 2011 NSW election came as pressure was mounting from the Premier Kristina Keneally to "refresh and renew" Labor politics in NSW.[25] Tripodi was the 15th Labor MP to announce their retirement since the last state election in 2007.[26] Although denying that he was pushed, Keneally praised his contribution to government economic reform, especially in the areas of energy, housing and ports.[3][26] There was significant media opinion that Tripodi's decision was a major victory for Labor's head office who saw him as a political liability.[2][27][28]
| Parliament of New South Wales | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Geoff Irwin |
Member for Fairfield 1995 – 2011 |
Succeeded by Guy Zangari |