Townsville Bulletin

Palmer handed himself millions

- MELANIE PETRINEC

CLIVE Palmer chaired a private meeting late last year to retrospect­ively approve about $ 200 million in payments from Queensland Nickel to himself, family and other business interests.

In the latest chapter of Mr Palmer’s battle with QN’s taxpayer- funded liquidator­s, new documents filed with the Supreme Court contain minutes of the meeting on November 21, at which he was the only official attendee, along with an employee “observer”.

In the meeting, he resolved to approve and ratify payments made between 2009 and 2016 that have been the subject of a court battle with liquidator­s since QN collapsed two years ago with $ 300 million in debts and about 800 job losses.

Payments included more than $ 5 million to two women overseas, almost $ 8 million to his father- in- law, $ 14 million to himself and $ 57 million to his resort, Palmer Leisure Coolum.

“It was resolved to ratify all directions given by Clive F. Palmer to Queensland Nickel Pty Ltd given in whatever capacity in the period 1 July 2009 to 30 March 2016,” the minutes stated.

“It was resolved to ratify and approve all actions, payments, and activities of Clive Palmer for the period 1 July 2009 to the date hereof.”

It was also resolved that Mr Palmer, as the owner of QN’s parent companies, “has and had full authority to act for and on the company’s behalf”.

It has previously been revealed Mr Palmer held a meeting in the weeks before a public examinatio­n into the collapse of QN began to ratify the contents of a “little green book”, which he claimed gave him the power to do whatever he wanted with the company’s money.

The former federal politician is being pursued in the Supreme Court for allegedly acting as a shadow director of QN and breaching his obligation­s, which he has denied.

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