The Controversial Legacy of Graham Richardson
The recent death of former Labor senator Graham Richardson has sparked intense debate across Australia's political landscape, particularly regarding the decision to grant him a state funeral. Veteran journalist John Hanscombe has broken the traditional silence around speaking ill of the dead, questioning what he describes as a collective amnesia about Richardson's deeply controversial career.
Known affectionately as 'Richo' by his Labor colleagues and Sky News associates, Richardson was far from the political saint some eulogies have suggested. As Hanscombe notes, veteran investigative journalist Kate McClymont acknowledged this week that while there was never quite enough evidence to prove allegations outright, Richardson's fingerprints were never far from NSW Labor scandals, leaving a persistent odour of malfeasance in his wake.
A History of Violence and Political Intrigue
Hanscombe's own introduction to Richardson came during his first week as a journalism cadet at the Newtown Guardian in 1980. The timing coincided with a brutal assault on local Labor MP Peter Baldwin, who was beaten so severely he became barely recognisable. Although never proven, loud whispers throughout political circles suggested the attack was part of a bitter factional dispute within the local ALP, with many pointing fingers at Graham Richardson as the right faction leader allegedly pulling strings behind the scenes.
The Guardian's office became familiar with intimidating figures from this political underworld, including Richardson's associate Tom Domican, who regularly visited on publication days. Domican would later face serious charges including murder and multiple conspiracies to murder, though he was ultimately acquitted of all allegations. The factional warfare continued escalating throughout Sydney's inner west, with branch meetings being disrupted, fire extinguishers thrown through windows, and persistent allegations of branch stacking from both sides of the political divide.
Decades of Scandal and Political Murkiness
Throughout the 1980s and beyond, Richardson remained close to numerous political scandals that would come to define NSW Labor's reputation for murkiness. The Love Boat scandal involved allegations that Sydney prostitute Virginia Perger had sexual encounters with leading businessmen and politicians, including Richardson, during harbour cruises. The Offset Alpine fire saw a printing press mysteriously burn down, resulting in an insurance payout far exceeding its actual value.
Other controversies included connections to disgraced stockbroker Rene Rivkin's Swiss bank account, questions about Multiplex's involvement in renovating Richardson's family home in Killara, and his mentorship of the notoriously corrupt Eddie Obeid. This extensive history of involvement in questionable activities makes Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's immediate offer of a taxpayer-funded state funeral particularly puzzling to many observers.
Anthony Albanese, who hails from Labor's left faction and should remember the violent political shenanigans of 1980s inner-west Labor politics, nonetheless leapt to his feet to offer the honour immediately after Richardson's death. This has led many to question whether the passage of time has erased memories that remain vivid and disturbing for those who witnessed these events from the sidelines.
The debate continues about whether there's too much taint surrounding Graham Richardson to justify a state funeral, and whether the factional wars that raged through NSW Labor in the late 1970s and early 1980s should be forgotten in favour of political convenience.
