McKinsey remains a Canberra favourite despite US criminal probe

1 week ago 7

News retired of the United States that blue-chip consulting elephantine McKinsey & Co is nether criminal investigation implicit its alleged relation successful fuelling the country’s opioid epidemic shouldn’t astonishment anyone who’s kept an oculus connected the firm’s caller history.

Over the past fewer years, McKinsey has paid retired astir $1.54 cardinal to settee assorted lawsuits implicit its enactment for Purdue Pharma, manufacturers of OxyContin, the cause that got Middle America hooked connected heroin. And that’s without adjacent going into the firm’s enactment for Big Tobacco and autocratic governments successful Russia, China and Saudi Arabia.

But it seems nary of this atrocious PR has reached the ears of bureaucrats successful Canberra, who stay firmly hooked connected the firm’s services, adjacent aft the ungraded engulfing PwC injected immoderate much-needed scepticism astir calling successful the consultants.

McKinsey is simply a peculiar favourite with the Department of Defence, which precocious extended a $28 cardinal declaration with the steadfast for “computer services” until this June. Defence besides paid McKinsey $5000 a time during a three-month play past twelvemonth to behaviour an “inclusive enactment review”, immoderate that means.

The Department of Home Affairs, meanwhile, entered into a $1 million, five-month declaration with McKinsey for “delivery of strategical argumentation deliverables”. McKinsey charged the Department of Climate Change $1.6 cardinal for 2 months’ enactment past year, the intent of which was to “produce a robust evidence-base to pass and usher the Department to make a cohesive bundle of argumentation measures”. Sure. None of those departments responded to CBD’s questions.

And that’s conscionable the caller stuff. In 2021, McKinsey was paid millions to assistance with the vaccine rollout. We cognize however that went. The Morrison authorities paid it $6 cardinal to “model” its mostly detail-free net-zero program that aforesaid year. It made immoderate PowerPoint slides.

And portion the nationalist work is up to its eyeballs successful McKinsey contracts, the firm’s alumni support showing up successful the corridors of power. New Liberal subordinate for Cook Simon Kennedy was a spouse determination and Home Affairs Minister Clare O’Neil, shadiness treasurer Angus Taylor, his Coalition frontbench workfellow David Coleman and Wentworth teal MP Allegra Spender have each travel done its doors.

While CBD isn’t suggesting immoderate of that unit worked for immoderate nefarious clients, it goes to amusement that McKinsey, which has a wont of recruiting young high-achievers, is simply a spot of a grooming crushed for radical aspiring to a beingness of powerfulness and influence.

As agelong arsenic that lasts, we reckon it’ll stay a subordinate successful the Canberra bubble.

NUCLEAR OPTION

One of the alien developments successful the existent governmental rhythm is the Coalition’s wholehearted clasp of atomic energy, a solution to the clime wars virtually nary elector ever asked for.

So far, it each seems a spot similar much occupation than it’s worthy due to the fact that adjacent immoderate of the much nuke-crazy Nats aren’t excessively keen connected having a tiny modular reactor successful their electorate. It’s caused further fractures among the Coalition, with Nationals person David Littleproud, who is astatine slightest crippled capable to connection his immense electorate of Maranoa arsenic a reactor host, telling his enactment helium wouldn’t fto the Liberals take wherever to enactment immoderate of the facilities.

And it’s alienated a fewer moderates, with Matt Kean recently quitting a radical for climate-conscious Liberals aft learning that it was becoming different conveyance to propulsion for atomic energy, acknowledgment to input from vigor mogul Trevor St Baker and erstwhile Nats MP Larry Anthony.

Meanwhile, astatine a authorities level, the NSW Liberals aren’t rather arsenic enthused astir a atomic aboriginal arsenic Dutton and co. But it’s a antithetic communicative among the Nationals. This week, the party’s authorities person Dugald Saunders and MP Sam Farraway, who’s wide tipped to spell national astatine the adjacent election, landed successful France arsenic portion of a European survey circuit into atomic energy.

Despite its estimation arsenic a federation of peaceniks, the French are fiends for atomic powerfulness – it accounts for astir 70 per cent of the country’s electricity

So, immoderate accidental of a reactor successful Dubbo oregon Orange? We reached retired to the lads connected tour, but they weren’t keen for a chat until they got home.

ROY OF THE ROVERS

Wyatt Roy, once our youngest-ever elected MP, has ever been the adventurous sort. In 2016, soon aft losing his spot successful parliament, Roy travelled to Iraq for immoderate reason, wherever helium recovered himself connected the frontlines of struggle betwixt ISIS and Kurdish Peshmerga forces.

More recently, that thirst for escapade has taken him to Saudi Arabia, wherever he’s Head of Innovation for NEOM, the absurd enactment metropolis which is the latest vanity task of the kingdom’s ruler, and bonesaw aficionado Mohammad Bin Salman. Quite the vocation alteration for 1 of the archetypal Liberals to backmost same-sex marriage!

News that NEOM, a 170-kilometre enactment city, would beryllium chopped successful size by a whopping 98.6 per cent intelligibly hasn’t affected Roy’s occupation prospects. He’s inactive documenting his merry Saudi adventures connected Instagram, and was astir precocious disconnected to China, spruiking NEOM astatine a roadshow for concern leaders successful Beijing, Shanghai and Shenzhen.

One representation successful peculiar stood retired — of Wyatt astatine a lectern successful beforehand of signs advertizing the Chinese government’s arguable Belt and Road Initiative. We can’t ideate a sitting Australian person being seen dormant with that successful the background.