No sequel, but an afterword in the Festival of Don
If there is some bitter irony in the fact Jay Weatherill has appointed Don Farrell – a man he wouldn’t countenance in his caucus – to help oversee the key infrastructure initiative of Labor’s fourth term, the banished Labor Unity powerbroker doesn’t see it.
A recent Government Gazette carried the appointment by the Premier of his factional nemesis to the board of the Adelaide Festival Centre Trust, little more than a year after Weatherill threatened to quit if Farrell was parachuted into the safe seat of Napier just weeks out from the state election.
“There’s no irony in that,” Farrell says of the appointment.
“No irony at all.”
The long-time secretary of the shoppies’ union, who for so long had Labor’s leaders dancing to his tune like political marionettes, says “other people can make some judgements about that”.
He turned 60 last year, but says “South Australia has been very good to me (and) I think I’ve still got a contribution to make”.
It’s a contribution for which the man often referred to by the media as a factional Godfather, and known to his colleagues as “The Don”, has struggled to find an outlet of late.
Relinquishing his unassailable top spot on the state Senate ticket to his cabinet senior Penny Wong, he found himself surprisingly without a requisite quota and thus without a job. He joked that The Godfather had a pretty good sequel, and looked to have found his own in state parliament until Wong’s fellow left-winger Weatherill thwarted his chances.
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So the man who hand-picked half SA’s Labor caucus was denied his chance to join them, instead banished to early political retirement, gainfully spent making boutique Clare Valley wines.
There’s an irony there, even if The Don can’t see it.
But Farrell says he’s looking forward to being a part of the Festival Centre’s second coming.
“I think one of the terrific attracters of people is the festival itself,” he says.
“It does attract people from interstate and all over the world, and there’s quite a relationship there between the arts and tourism …it really is an attraction to SA to have an arts event like the festival.
“I think we know face a lot of competition from other states, but particularly with the revamp – which is going to be absolutely terrific – I’d be pretty hopeful we’ll have a fresh lease of life, and I’d like to be a part of that.”
While sanctioned by the Premier, Farrell’s appointment was at the instigation of Arts Minister and factional ally Jack Snelling. When asked to comment by InDaily on the appointment, Weatherill’s response was hardly effusive: “I welcome Mr Farrell’s appointment, his experience in the tourism portfolio and as a federal minister will serve the board well.”
Farrell, who proudly never once voted for Kevin Rudd in a leadership ballot (and there were a few of them), served as Minister for Science and Research, as well as Assisting in Tourism, under Julia Gillard. When Rudd returned, he briefly served as Minister for Sport.
The Opposition, not unreasonably, points out that Farrell’s is only one of a slew of conspicuous appointments for ousted Labor MPs since the Government was returned last year. Earlier this month, former Transport Services Minister Chloe Fox was appointed to the History Trust of South Australia.
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Deputy Liberal Leader Vickie Chapman argues “the appointment of Labor mates to Government boards is now an entrenched feature of how the Weatherill Government operates”.
“Former Labor MPs Grace Portolesi and Chloe Fox are just two examples of parliamentarians who lost the confidence of their electorates only to be rewarded with plum board positions,” she says.
“Appointment to Government boards should be determined by the individual’s ability to perform the role, not how well one is connected to Labor’s ruling elite.”
But Farrell insists his own appointment is a natural fit. He cites his CV like an earnest job interviewee, noting he has been “instrumental in doing a number of things in that (Riverbank) vicinity”, including securing significant federal funding for a Uni SA’s cancer biology centre and “a couple of the aspects outside the new Adelaide Oval”.
“It’s all part of that rejuvenation,” he reflects.
But he says his is more than merely a political consolation prize, an appointment to satisfy someone who may not know much about art but knows what he likes.
Indeed, the former sport minister has a quiet aesthetic air; during a recent photo session with News Corp to promote his wine, he turned to admire the vista behind him, as the sun crept through an ominous blanket of grey cloud above his rugged Sevenhill vineyard.
“It looks like a Turner,” Farrell remarked. The photographer, Matt Turner, concurred.
“My first job was actually down at the Festival Theatre,” Farrell tells InDaily.
He was working as an industrial officer with the now-defunct Australian Theatrical and Amusement Employees’ Association, and says he’s maintained an “ongoing interest in the Festival Theatre and the arts ever since”.
“I like the arts; in my early days when I wasn’t quite so often based in Canberra, I used to make a point of going down to the State Theatre Company,” he says, recalling having seen “a young Mel Gibson and Hugo Weaving’s very first efforts on the stage”.
“It’s a very significant amount of money that Minister Snelling has secured for the redevelopment, but there are some challenges, particularly in terms of timing, with the other redevelopments going on down there.
“I’d be pretty confident that the money will be well spent, in a way South Australians will feel very pleased with (and) I hope in my time on the board, South Australians will acknowledge I’ve made a contribution.”
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