Do we need to be concerned? is the news we read daily any different than other governments?
It has always been true that sponsored travel when highlighted leaves a bad taste in the publics mouth.
Not in my view unlike Doctors getting favors for pushing items.
However is it wrong? would we want to pay for that travel?
The links with China are important to us, we have to face facts, that country is bound for world financial leadership, maybe far more.
Given Rudd's polling it seems clear fear tactics is not selling to voters.
And given the sub servant relationship Howard had with America the opposition may yet again be fishing in a dry pond.
A poll in the Australian said 56% of readers did not think defense minister should be sacked.

There's no such thing as a free lunch.

The way I see it, the very real danger is common to ALL politicians here in Oz, their utter naivety in relationship to China's political sophistication and deviousness. How that plays out in the long run remains to be seen, but off-hand I'd say not well, for us.
Rudd and his posse SEEM to be babes in the woods, but we can't know for sure. Their cap in hand approach to the Corporates doesn't bode well though. I'm not overly concerned about anything beyond the commercial field, no "Reds under the bed" or "Yellow Peril", but their commercial and political arms are so thoroughly enmeshed, and corrupt, that we will need to issue our Glorious Leaders chastity belts if we want to make any money out of the connections.

Dear Belly, I think the real issue is the failure to disclose the funded trip on the ficuniary interests statement and the subsequent denial. The minister certainly knew the trip had taken place and that it was certainly paid for by a third party, it was a deliberate omission.

In the private sector, such "gifts" to employees have been banned, those that are approved as part of business activities are taxed under the fringe benefits tax rules, and declared as employee emoluments in the annual finacial report.

The issues of who, what, where, when and why are totally irrelevent, the Minister lied by omission, then lied again when asked disrectly.

The minister lied, yep no defense from me.
But he is a very small part of the issue, he seems to have fallen foul of his department, any effort to stir them from slumber has always done that.
C J Morgan sees fire, another says Rudd's mob are unaware of Chinas sneakiness.
Just maybe, in fact surely? we are just as sneaky.
This is not a Labor problem, if it is a problem, ministers in the Howard government took many sponsored trips, one at least paid for by AWB.
China is emerging as a real force in the world, generations of world leaders have looked for closer ties with such through out history.
I have to be open here, I support Fizgibon in his fight with the defense department.
Not however in his lie, and remember he was very strongly on Lathams team, and said anti union things without much respect for workers.
I think China like it or not is better now than 20 years ago and it may get better.

Dear Belly,

The China trip - is another media blow up - instigated
by the Opposition in an attempt to discredit the Government
at a time when the Government appears to be making great
headway in the popularity stakes both domestically and
internationally. But I guess that's the job of the Opposition
in Australia, as they see it.

As far as China is concerned - it is a
world power - which can't be ignored - to ignore it today would be a great economic disaster. China will open up even more through her
dealings with the West.