Craig Thomson gets a little help from his friends
Wednesday, 25 February 2015
Two weeks ago, Craig Thomson had no spare money and swore that he could only afford to pay $50 per month off his insufficient fine for fraud - heres' The Age's report
Judge's warning to Craig Thomson: Pay $25,000 fine faster than $50 a month or else go to jail
Mr Thomson avoided a jail term last year but was fined when found guilty of 13 counts of theft, related to the withdrawals of $5650 from ATMs with HSU credit cards, while he was the union's national secretary between 2002 and 2007.
He used the money to pay for sex and fine dining expenses for he and his then wife.
The former Labor MP for the NSW seat of Dobell told judge Lisa Hannan on Friday that he and his wife currently earned about $3000 a month, had little equity in their home and no savings.
That home, by the way, would be this home:
Craig Thomson says he did not help his wife Zoe Arnold dodge stamp duty when buying the home he lives in
CRAIG Thomson claims he was not the de facto partner of wife Zoe Arnold in February 2009 when she bought the family's current home and claimed a government stamp duty exemption - even though Ms Arnold was pregnant with his child.
Ms Arnold avoided $15,000 in stamp duty through a first home owner's scheme on the Bateau Bay, NSW home.
The scheme forbids a homeowner to claim the stamp duty exemption if they have a spouse or de facto who has previously owned property. The First Home Plus scheme provided stamp duty exemptions for homes under $500,000 in NSW.
He maintains the de facto relationship began after Ms Arnold bought the property. Transfer documents were signed by Ms Arnold on February 20, 2009. Five days later, Mr Thomson changed his electoral enrolment to the Bateau Bay address.
"We checked with authorities. She was perfectly entitled to buy the house in her name," Mr Thomson told The Sunday Telegraph.
"We entered a de facto relationship some time after she bought. We in fact checked with the first home scheme.
"You write anything and we will sue the s ... out of you."
It's amazing what the threat of gaol will do. Here's yesterday's instalment.
Craig Thomson finds cash to pay fine after telling judge he was broke
CRAIG Thomson has found the money to pay his $25,000 fine for stealing from the Health Services Union, less than two weeks after telling a judge he was broke.
Thomson today applied to bring his case back before the Victorian County Court at short notice, offering a new payment plan to judge Lisa Hannan.
He had previously sought to pay $50 a month, but the court heard he could now pay a lump sum of $3000 next month, followed by three monthly payments of $500 and 20 monthly payments of $980 each before a final payment of $900.
Judge Hannan said the fine would therefore be paid off within two years, and questioned Thomson on how he had come by the cash when he had earlier sworn that he was in severe financial trouble. “Through the help of family and friends,” he replied.