Mallee & Parsley,
I see the AWB & BNP Paribas have more trouble!
AWB to vigorously defend lawsuit
http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/awb-to-vigorously-defend-lawsuit/2006/12/23/1166290780872.html
"Embattled wheat exporter AWB has been dealt another blow, with Iraqi citizens seeking massive damages from the company for its role in the oil-for-food kickbacks scandal.
A civil lawsuit, filed in a US court today on behalf of northern Iraqi people, seeks $255 million in damages from AWB in conjunction with action against European bank BNP Paribas.
The suit claims the companies cheated Iraqis out of humanitarian supplies 1999 and 2003 by funnelling money into Saddam Hussein's coffers instead of putting it towards food and medical supplies through the UN oil-for-food program between.
The legal action continues the fallout from the Cole inquiry, which found AWB paid more than $290 million in illicit kickbacks to Saddam Hussein's former regime in exchange for access to Iraqi wheat markets.
AWB Limited today vowed to fight the legal action, which it described as ill-conceived.
"It would be an ill-conceived action, and if it's brought to fruition it would be vigorously defended," company spokesman Peter McBride said.
The federal government said today it had not been formally told of the lawsuit but was confident in AWB's competency as a wheat exporter.
"We haven't had any confirmation of it happening at an official level," a spokesman for Trade Minister Warren Truss said.
"AWB will continue to sell wheat around the world and it will do that very well."
The legal action comes just a day after the Australian government broke AWB's 67-year monopoly over wheat exports by granting export permits to two rival companies.
Labor warned the lawsuit would place added costs on AWB and its shareholders, even if it was successful in defending the case.
"It's going to have an impact anyway because they're going to have to defend it - and that means costs to the shareholders," opposition trade spokesman Simon Crean said.
"Wheat growers, and especially shareholders, would be concerned by this.
"If it gets up, there will be a loss to shareholders."
Mr Crean said the federal government should have been more closely monitoring the integrity of the oil-for-food program, aimed at helping Iraqi civilians.
"It's highlighting, in my view, just how dramatically deficient and negligent the government was in relation to this program," he said.
"What was used to pay bribes should have gone towards food.
"We should have been ensuring that the money went to more food and more medical supplies, not trucking fees (for Saddam's regime)."
AWB is now banned from selling wheat to Iraq.
Agriculture Minister Peter McGauran has granted Wheat Australia permission to export to the country, one of Australia's most important markets.
Mr McGauran declined to comment on the civil case against AWB today.
Yesterday, he approved applications from Wheat Australia and CBH to export a total of 800,000 tonnes of wheat to Iraq and Indonesia."
AAP
I see the AWB & BNP Paribas have more trouble!
AWB to vigorously defend lawsuit
http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/awb-to-vigorously-defend-lawsuit/2006/12/23/1166290780872.html
"Embattled wheat exporter AWB has been dealt another blow, with Iraqi citizens seeking massive damages from the company for its role in the oil-for-food kickbacks scandal.
A civil lawsuit, filed in a US court today on behalf of northern Iraqi people, seeks $255 million in damages from AWB in conjunction with action against European bank BNP Paribas.
The suit claims the companies cheated Iraqis out of humanitarian supplies 1999 and 2003 by funnelling money into Saddam Hussein's coffers instead of putting it towards food and medical supplies through the UN oil-for-food program between.
The legal action continues the fallout from the Cole inquiry, which found AWB paid more than $290 million in illicit kickbacks to Saddam Hussein's former regime in exchange for access to Iraqi wheat markets.
AWB Limited today vowed to fight the legal action, which it described as ill-conceived.
"It would be an ill-conceived action, and if it's brought to fruition it would be vigorously defended," company spokesman Peter McBride said.
The federal government said today it had not been formally told of the lawsuit but was confident in AWB's competency as a wheat exporter.
"We haven't had any confirmation of it happening at an official level," a spokesman for Trade Minister Warren Truss said.
"AWB will continue to sell wheat around the world and it will do that very well."
The legal action comes just a day after the Australian government broke AWB's 67-year monopoly over wheat exports by granting export permits to two rival companies.
Labor warned the lawsuit would place added costs on AWB and its shareholders, even if it was successful in defending the case.
"It's going to have an impact anyway because they're going to have to defend it - and that means costs to the shareholders," opposition trade spokesman Simon Crean said.
"Wheat growers, and especially shareholders, would be concerned by this.
"If it gets up, there will be a loss to shareholders."
Mr Crean said the federal government should have been more closely monitoring the integrity of the oil-for-food program, aimed at helping Iraqi civilians.
"It's highlighting, in my view, just how dramatically deficient and negligent the government was in relation to this program," he said.
"What was used to pay bribes should have gone towards food.
"We should have been ensuring that the money went to more food and more medical supplies, not trucking fees (for Saddam's regime)."
AWB is now banned from selling wheat to Iraq.
Agriculture Minister Peter McGauran has granted Wheat Australia permission to export to the country, one of Australia's most important markets.
Mr McGauran declined to comment on the civil case against AWB today.
Yesterday, he approved applications from Wheat Australia and CBH to export a total of 800,000 tonnes of wheat to Iraq and Indonesia."
AAP
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