Eddie Obeid to lose parliamentary pension in change to law after jail sentence, NSW Premier says – WBNews

Disgraced former Labor kingmaker Eddie Obeid will be stripped of his annual parliamentary pension and forced to pay back hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal fees, after he was sent to prison for misconduct in a public office. Obeid was sentenced to five years in jail, with a minimum non-parole period of three years this morning after his conviction in June. Currently, former politicians who are convicted of serious offences only lose their pensions if they are charged while still in office. But Premier Mike Baird said as soon as Parliament resumes next year the Government would move to amend the Parliamentary Contributory Superannuation Act 1971 to change that. Mr Baird said Mr Obeid should not be shielded just because he resigned before he ended up in the courts. “The crimes of Eddie Obeid and his cronies are the most serious instance of official corruption we have seen in our lifetime,” he said. “We will work cooperatively with the Opposition and crossbench MPs over the summer recess to bring forward amendments that repair this glaring anomaly and we will make sure they capture Obeid and any others who find themselves in this situation.” The Premier also said the Government would move to recover taxpayer-funded legal assistance that was provided to Obeid in this particular case, once all avenues for appeal are exhausted. The figure amounts to more than $280,000. Mr Baird said he hoped Obeid’s downfall would serve as a warning to others. “My hope is that anyone that…more detail