#8: Who really owns Brisbane Airport?

60 Reasons to Protest: Reason #8 – Who really owns Brisbane Airport?

Did you know that YOU may be a part-owner of Brisbane Airport through your superannuation?

“Over 63% of BAC’s shareholders are major Australian institutional investors, including QIC, a state-owned entity which manages interests on behalf of its clients. Many of BAC’s shareholders are ultimately ordinary Australians with their savings invested in superannuation and other investment funds.

BAC Annual Report 2022, page 14

Let’s look at those superannuation holdings a bit closer. Of particular interest are a 20% share held by IFM Investors and a 25% share held by the Queensland Investment Corporation (QIC).

IFM Investors

IFM Investors is an Australian fund manager specialising in infrastructure investments such as airports. It is owned by Industry Super.

BFPCA asks you for a favour. Please check whether your superannuation is invested in Brisbane Airport. If you are with one of the industry super funds, chances are you may well be a shareholder of BAC. Please check your super fund’s website or contact them directly to find out whether your super is invested in Brisbane Airport. On the super fund websites, search for the term “investment holdings” or “holding disclosures.” Some funds offer searchable lists, others let you download xls or csv tables of all your holdings. In those files, search for either “Brisbane Airport” or for “IFM Investors.”

Industry SuperFunds include: AustralianSuper, Cbus, HESTA, Hostplus, Spirit Super (they own a 4.9% share in BAC directly!), CareSuper, NGS Super, TWUSUPER, FIRSTSuper, legalsuper, REISuper.

Additionally, there are other industry super funds that don’t belong to the ISA brand, but they may still use IFM Investors and thus have exposure to Brisbane Airport shareholdings. They include: Active Super, Australian Retirement Trust (merger of SunSuper and QSuper), AvSuper, AwareSuper, Brighter Super (formerly Energy Super), BUSSQ Superannuation, Catholic Super, Christian Super, Child Care Super, EISS Super, Equipsuper, Mine Super, UniSuper, RestSuper.

Please also check your superannuation holdings for BAC investments even if your super fund is not part of the list above, as other funds may still use the investment services of IFM Investors. We ask everyone to please post your findings in the comments on our Facebook discussion group as that will help BFPCA with the shareholder activism campaign we are preparing for.

But there is more!

Check out who sits on the board of these investment companies:

Both the boards of IFM Investors and Industry Super are chaired by the Greg Combet, former Australian politician and trade unionist. He was Secretary of the Australian Council of Trade Unions between 1999 and 2007 and a Senior Minister of the ALP.

Greg is joined by IFM Deputy Chair Cath Bowtell, former senior union official, and Labor’s candidate for the inner-city seat of Melbourne in 2010 and 2013 trying to out Adam Bandt – unsuccessfully. Her Twitter says: “Feminist, unionist, ALP.”

And then we have board member Deborah Kiers. Earlier in her career, Deborah worked as a consultant and advisor to a number of Australian Federal and State Government Ministers. Guess which colour… yes: red. She also wrote “Having a say: democracy at work” for the Labor Resource Centre (VIC) in 1985.

The Board of Industry Super is chaired by Greg Combet, too, and includes representatives from industry super funds, former state and federal ministers such as Wayne Swan, former Labor Treasurer of Australia, the ACTU Secretary, Sally McManus, and the National Secretary of the CFMEU, Michael O’Connor.

And then perhaps it is no wonder why Kevin Rudd didn’t do anything once elected Prime Minister in Dec 2007, and why Anthony Albanese and Catherine King have abandoned Brisbane communities on the noise pollution issue: Labor people govern airport investments not just in Brisbane Airport but also in Sydney, Melbourne, Hobart, Darwin and other airports.

Do you want to know more?

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Queensland Investment Corporation

QIC own a 25% stake in Brisbane Airport. QIC is being used as an investment service company by the Australian Retirement Trust which is the super fund formed through the merger of Sunsuper and QSuper.

One of the QIC board directors is John Battams, who is an Honorary President of the Australian Labor Party (Queensland Branch).

John is also Chairman and Managing Director of Labor Holdings Pty Ltd, which has an interesting history:

“First registered in 1959 as a radio station, then sold in 1987. Labor Holdings Pty Ltd is the Australian Labor Party’s leading funds raiser and registered associated entity for The ALP Queensland Office with the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC). The company has generated over $100 million in funds in 20 years since registered with the AEC, providing both the Qld Office and the National Office with $40 million in funds in that time. About half of this money has been in the form of donations, the other as receipts, with about $4.8 million not being categorised. Between 2002 and 2006, no funds were made available to the ALP, followed by a large donation in 2006/7 of $6.3 million to the Qld Office. Described as a investment company, the biggest source of funds has come from a number of firms, particularly Morgan Investments (RBS Morgans, previously known as ACN Amro Morgans) and Macquarie Group, along with Credit Suisse and various other property investment firms and petroleum companies.”

(Source)

Do you want to know more?

How political parties hide the source of their donations

The final disclosures of political donations to be published before the election show the source of more than half of the money is hidden by loopholes. By Hannah Ryan and originally published in the Saturday Paper on February 5 2022 The most generous donation given to the Victorian branch of the Lib…

Political donations: $1.2 billion over 22 years, and ‘associated entities’ dominate

The property industry led the list of business sectors donating to both parties, giving $37.4 million to Labor and $53.1 million to the Coalition, but a new study concludes that too many other donations are being hidden.

State elections reveal just how important major party investment arms are

The two big elections of 2020-21 — in Queensland and WA — show that big financial assets are crucial in modern-day politics.

Sustainable Investment: The ESG Principles

What is also noteworthy is that all BAC shareholders subscribe to ESG ethical investment principles. ESG principles refer to the three main factors considered when evaluating the sustainability and ethical impact of an investment: Environmental, Social, and Governance. Environmental factors assess a company’s impact on the environment, such as its carbon footprint or resource usage. Social factors evaluate the company’s treatment of employees, customers, communities, and diversity and inclusion practices. Governance factors examine the company’s leadership, board structure, transparency, and ethical business practices. ESG principles aim to guide investors in assessing the long-term sustainability and societal impact of their investments, considering not only financial returns but also environmental and social considerations.

• 26.6% Igneo Infrastructure Partners and related funds – ESG commitments
• 25% QIC Infrastructure Management and related funds – ESG commitments
• 20% IFM Investors – ESG commitments
• 19.6% Royal Schiphol Group – ESG commitments (see also our letter to the Dutch parliament on this)
• 4.9% Spirit Super – ESG commitments
• 3.9% Patrizia managed shareholdings – ESG commitments

Are these investors meeting their ESG commitments? How ethical and socially sustainable is an investment in Brisbane Airport Corporation do you think?