Greg Barns

Greg Barns is a weekly columnist with the Hobart newspaper, The Mercury, a columnist with the mining industry trade magazines, Gold & Minerals Gazette and Resource World and a director of several mining companies with interests in uranium and gold projects.

Barns has worked as a staffer for a number of state and federal Liberal Party politicians and a lobbyist for the gold mining industry. He has also been active in the campaign for a republic and several human rights groups. At one stage Barns worked as a consultant to the public relations and lobbying firm, Parker & Partners, which had Forestry Tasmania as one of its clients.

Background
Between 1991 and 1993 Barns was a "consultant" to the Melbourne based Tasman Economic Research, a conservative economic think tank. Barns was an adviser to to the Liberal government of John Howard. After leaving government was the chief executive of the Australian Gold Council, a peak lobby group for gold mining companies. He subsequently ran for pre-selection to the Liberal Party in the federal seat of Denison for the 2001 election but was dis-endorsed for his criticism of the Howard Government's policies against asylum seekers arriving by boat. He then joined the Democrats.

A biographical note stated :


 * "Greg Barns is a former state and federal government adviser and a Hobart based author. He is a former adviser to New South Wales Premier Nick Greiner and federal Finance Minister John Fahey. Greg Barns ran the 1999 Republic Referendum campaign with Malcolm Turnbull. He is the author of What’s Wrong with the Liberal Party? (2003) and Selling the Australian Government: Politics and Propaganda from Whitlam to Howard (2005).


 * "Greg Barns is a former senior advisor to the Howard Government. After being disendorsed as Liberal candidate for the Tasmanian seat of Denison he joined the Democrats. He was chair of the Australian Republican Movement from 1999-2002."

Another biographical note stated that "he is a member of the Victorian Bar where he practised in criminal law from 1986-89. Greg was chief of staff and senior adviser to a number of federal and state Liberal Party leaders and ministers from 1989-99.  He is also the former National Chair of the Australian Republican Movement and a director of human rights group, Rights Australia."


 * "Greg has been a high profile participant in the Australian gold sector over the past 3 years in his role as CEO of the Robert Champion de Crespigny-inspired Australian Gold Council (AGC). Prior to joining the AGC, Mr Barns gained a wealth of experience in both state and federal government. Greg is qualified as a lawyer and has worked as Chief-of-Staff for the former Tasmanian Premier Ray Groom and the Chief-of-Staff for the former Federal Finance Minister John Fahey."


 * "In his three years with the AGC, Mr Barns was able to provide the directors of the AGC with excellent advice on political and community issues affecting the Australian gold mining sector. He also formed lasting relationships with the Australian financial press and, most importantly for the Company, with the financial sector in Australia and overseas. Mr Barns is also the Non-Executive Chairman of a number of mining and exploration, companies and is a columnist for Gold & Minerals Gazette and Resource World. He is a director of Sustainable Infrastructure Australia Pty Ltd. He is the immediate past Chairman of the Australian Republican Movement."

Mining Interests
Barns is a Non-Executive Director of Republic Gold, a small Australian mining company with interests in gold mining exploration projects in Queensland and New South Wales. In 2007 Barns was paid a total of $71,807 including for salary, directors fees and consultancy fees. The company's annual report stated that the consultancy work was for "provision of public and governmental relations in the ordinary course of business to Mr G J Barns". In 2006 Barns was paid $65,900.

Barns is also a non-executive director of Uranium King, a Pert-headquartered mineral exploration company with interests in uranium exploration projects in New Mexico and Nevada. In its 2007 annual report the company states that Barns "provides legal guidance to Board". Barns was paid $40,000 by the company.

Affiliations

 * Advisory Board, OzProspect
 * Non-Executive Director, Republic Gold
 * Non-Executive Director, Uranium King
 * Principal, Sustainable Infrastructure Australia.

Former Directorships

 * Non-Executive Chairman of Strata Mining Corporation Limited;
 * Director of Excalibur Mining Corporation Limited.
 * non-executive director of Citigold Limited.

Biographical notes

 * "Greg Barns", Online Opinion, accessed July 2006.

Articles and Interviews by Barns

 * Greg Barns, "Why Tasmania?", Australian Mining Times, December 2002, page 14.
 * Greg Barns, "Say what you will, this is not about free speech:The court action by Gunns is not about silencing protesters, writes Greg Barns", The Age, December 21, 2004.
 * Greg Barns, "Greens need to declare", The Mercury, March 6, 2006. (Scroll down).
 * "Mr Barns talks to Mr Cox", Tasmanian Times, March 9, 2006.
 * Greg Barns, "Stick to the fiction, mate", The Mercury, March 10, 2008.
 * Greg Barns, "US finger in unrest pie", The Mercury, March 24, 2008.
 * Greg Barns, "Anti-graft body just overkill", The Mercury, August 25, 2008.
 * Greg Barns, "Pulp prosperity a fair bet", The Mercury, September 08, 2008.
 * Greg Barns, "Missing the forest for the trees", The Mercury, September 16, 2008.

General Articles

 * Wes Young, "The Premier's dirt unit", Tasmanian Times, March 8, 2006.
 * Rob Gowland, "Tibet: who’s for feudalism?", The Guardian (CPA), April 9, 2008.