Media Release

21 February 2017: KAP Federal Member for Kennedy, Bob Katter has called on Australians to contact their local politicians and give them ‘The Request’- to support the Banking Royal Commission/Commission of Inquiry.

Only the executive arm of Government can call for a Royal Commission, so a Commission of Inquiry is being pursued with all the powers of a Royal Commission, but it will report to the Parliament, instead of the executive arm of Government.

To become law the Commission of Inquiry will require two members of the Government in the lower house to cross the floor. The Federal Member for Dawson, George Christensen has publicly stated he will support a Commission of Inquiry – so one more Government MP's vote is required for the bill to pass.

“So we just need one more. There is only one language politicians understand and that is ‘we are going to get you, we are going to get rid of you at the next election’,” Mr Katter said.

“We have had 100s of people from all over Australia ringing my office and demanding a Royal Commission into the banks – which we already support and we introduced Commission of Inquiry legislation last year.

“So from now on we are telling them to put ‘The Request’ to their local Federal Member of Parliament and get three people to do the same. Those three people are then asked to get another three people each, who then get another three people….and so it continues.

“I’m telling Australians to contact their local Federal Member of Parliament and say ‘are you voting to support this?’ If the Local Federal Member is not supporting the Royal Commission into the Banks then say, ‘we officially inform you that we are working to get rid of you at the next election’. It is not about saying we support someone else, it is just that we are getting rid of you.

“80% of the Australian people want a Royal Commission into the banks. It is a litmus test really on whether you are there to represent and protect the established order, or if you are there to represent the people. This could not be a more clear cut case.

“It is quite clear to me that George Christensen is a man of integrity and will cross the floor, as he has done before. He is a Lone Ranger. Not another soul from the ALP or LNP has crossed the floor in the last 20 years.

“Depending on definition there has been between 15 and 38 inquiries since 2010. But the savagery of a Royal Commission and its powers can’t be ignored. I never regretted the Royal Commission in QLD, even though it cost me and my Country Party greatly and many innocents were burned. Even though we never put the bad guys in gaol, we did remove their protection and destroyed the corruption. This is what a Royal Commission brings.

Australians can find out who their local Federal Member of Parliament is on the following website which has a search function to search by electorate, postcode or politicians name: http://www.aph.gov.au/Senators_and_Members/Members

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