Alan Griffiths

For the cricket player, see Alan Griffiths (cricketer).

Alan Gordon Griffiths (born 4 September 1952), is a former Australian politician who represented the Division of Maribyrnong for the Australian Labor Party from March 1983 to January 1996.

Early life

Born in Melbourne, Griffiths graduated from Monash University in 1979 with a Bachelor of Economics and a Bachelor of Laws.^[1]

Political career

Entering the parliament in 1983, Griffiths became the Minister for Resources in 1990, the Minister for Tourism in 1991 and the Minister for Industry, Technology and Regional Development in 1993.

Sandwich Shop Affair

In 1994, Mr. Griffiths resigned as Minister for Industry, Technology and Regional Development after the "Sandwich Shop Affair" came to light. It was alleged that ALP funds, resources and staff wages from Mr. Griffiths' electoral office were used to bail out his business partner from a failed sandwich shop venture in Melbourne's Moonee Ponds.^[2] An inquiry by the former head of the Department of Prime Minister, Michael Codd, into the scandal cleared Mr. Griffiths of any criminal wrongdoing.^[3] Mr. Griffiths was also cleared of any wrongdoing by the Australian Federal Police, who were alerted to the matter by Mr. Griffiths.^[4] Despite being cleared by the Codd inquiry - an investigation which Mr. Griffiths had also requested - he announced at the Victorian ALP Conference in April 1995 that he would not contest the 1996 election, which Labor lost. In his resignation speech, Mr. Griffiths acknowledged the allegations had taken "a lot of momentum out of my career". But he had waited for "total vindication" before declaring his resignation. ``I am in the happy situtation of being totally vindicated," he told the media at the time. "I spoke to the Prime Minister this morning who I might say tried to talk me out of announcing my resignation and who confirmed his previous public commitment that I would return to the Cabinet as soon as possible. But there is life after politics, and I intend to pursue life after politics. ^[5] In a statement, then prime minister Paul Keating praised Mr. Griffiths' contribution to the parliament and the cabinet from the time of his election in 1983. "It has always been my expectation and hope that the current inquiry into those matters will clear Alan Griffiths of any wrongdoing," Mr Keating said. "Alan Griffiths would have had sufficient support among his parliamentary colleagues to return to the ministry in due course. I would certainly have welcomed his return to Cabinet." ^[6] At the time, Mr. Codd had offered to give the prime minister an interim report which could have cleared the way for Mr. Griffiths to make an early return to the Cabinet. But the prime minister declined, preferring to await the final report which would take several more months.^[7] However, it was stated in a book by a then opposition Liberal politician that the inquiry found aspects of his conduct were improper.^[8]

After politics

After leaving politics, Mr Griffiths founded a technology company, Quantm, based on an advanced computer program developed by CSIRO ^[9] The technology generated huge savings on Australasian, US and Chinese infrastructure projects, according to a report in the respected regional journal The Far Eastern Economic review. For instance, it saved the California High-Speed Rail Authority $US4.8 billion on just part of its proposed 1,100 kilometre track. Quantm's online system is based on algorithms. It automates the process through which roads are designed and costed and presents the planner with a range of options.^[10] Mr. Griffiths, the majority owner and founder of Quantm, and the Quantm board in 2006 agreed to sell the company to an arm of a U.S. construction conglomerate, Trimble Navigation Ltd, for what was believed to be a multi-million dollar price tag to pursue other entrepreneurial business ventures, including a United Kingdom-based high technology business.^[11] In early 2006, Quantm, as a leader in transport route optimisation, was selected by the National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) - Transportation Research Board as one of eight technologies enabling highway and railroad planners to successfully factor in environmental concerns in transportation decisions ^[12] Quantm, which by 2006 was already being used by 14 U.S. states, was chosen from a field of 70 technologies for the prestigious award ^[13] In December 2010, Mr. Griffiths was also appointed as a non-executive director of Guildford Coal Limited.^[14] In addition to his business activities since leaving politics, Mr. Griffiths has been involved in public policy and philanthropic work as a member of the President's Council of the Brussels-based International Crisis Group.^{[15] [16][17]}

References