Is Angus Houston too close to China?

My interview about this article with Alan Jones on ADH TV on 14 September 2022 can be accessed here – the interview begins at 28:40 on the programme. And a follow-up by Alan in the opening of his show the next night is here).

On Wednesday 3 August the Albanese government announced that a review of the Australian Defence Force would be conducted jointly by former Labor Defence Minister Stephen Smith and retired ADF chief Sir Angus Houston, and throughout the days that followed, questions were raised over the suitability of Smith given that, during his time as Defence Minister, he had overseen a reduction in the Defence budget. Equally if not more problematic, however, is the appointment of Houston, who, as recently as October 2020, insisted that China is a friend of Australia and that it was wrong of Australia to act or think otherwise.

Continued on The Spectator Australia – here.

What does China know about MH370?

Australia deserves some credit for its role in the search for MH370. It was a flight connected with the interests of China more than any other country, in that its intended destination was Beijing, it first met with trouble whilst over the militarised South China Sea, and of the 239 passengers and crew who lost their lives, 154 were Chinese nationals. Yet, in the search effort that ended in January 2017, Australia’s financial investment was more than three times that of China’s in addition to Australia committing its own personnel and resources. It was good of Australia to do this. It was not acting under any legal obligation.

Continued on The Spectator Australia – here.

MH370 – the lead that vanished

Now that the “shocking” new evidence in the Sky News documentary MH370: The Untold Story has been revealed, I write to report a disappearance. Of the various theories and leads that have been advanced since the tragedy on 8 March 2014, there is one that has gone missing, never sighted by any investigating team including, now, Sky News. I refer to an early lead offered by an Australian scientific exploration company which was presented in good faith but which, irrespective of its merits, fell prey to cancel culture.

Continued on The Spectator Australia – here.