ACIL Allen Consulting

ACIL Allen Consulting is an Australian consultancy firm. It is the result of the April 2013 merger between Allen Consulting Group and ACIL Tasman.[1] As of 2013, ACIL Allen employed 90 consultants in offices in Sydney, Melbourne, Canberra and Hong Kong.[1]

Background

Tasman Institute

The Tasman Institute was founded by Michael G. Porter in 1990 as a neoliberal think tank, based on his attempts in 1987 to found a private university and his earlier think tank, the Centre of Policy Studies.[2] During the 1990s, it became one of the three largest neo-liberal think tanks in Australia.[2] Through its consultancy arm, Tasman Asia-Pacific, it advised Asia-Pacific and Eastern European countries on privatisation and deregulation,[3][2] in what academic Damien Cahill identifies as a rare example of a think tank "that puts neo-liberal theory into practice".[2]

The Tasman Institute consulted for the Greiner government in 1991 on the privatisation of the Hunter Water Board.[2]

With the libertarian think tank the Institute of Public Affairs, and funding from Victorian employer associations, the Tasman Institute prepared "Project Victoria" which proposed a neo-liberal program for the incoming Kennett government.[2] The Tasman Institute was also awarded a government contract to consult on electricity privatisation in the state.[2] Transport Minister Alan Brown would later describe the Tasman Institute as having a "profound effect" on government policy.[2]

In 1995, the Tasman Institute and Tasman Asia-Pacific affiliated with the University of Melbourne.[2]

Mergers

In 2000, Tasman merged with the deregulation and privatisation consultancy London Economics (Australia), forming Tasman Economics. In 2002, Tasman Economics merged with ACIL Consulting, forming ACIL Tasman.[3] Tasman Institute founder Porter became the executive chair. London Economics founder and Tasman Economics CEO Nick Morris became the CEO.[4]

Nick Morris stepped down as CEO in October 2005 and left ACIL Tasman in February 2006,[5] after he and ACIL Tasman senior consultant Jeffrey Rae were charged with hacking rival consultant Access Economics.[6]

ACIL Tasman merged with rival consultants Allen Consulting Group in 2013.[7]

Consulting topics and clients

ACIL consulted extensively to Philip Morris and the Australian Tobacco Industry, preparing economic and public polling reports that were favourable to the cigarette companies.[8][9][10] In the 1990s, Philip Morris planned to hire ACIL to do a "before and after economic impact" study to criticise the Australian government's planned tobacco packaging warning messages.[11]

ACIL Tasman was criticised in newspaper The Australian in September 2012, with Tristan Edis saying that its predictions on renewable energy, fossil fuels and electricity markets were poor - although it "does have an excellent understanding of operating costs for existing large electricity generators in Australia". Edis noted that, at the time, large emitter lobby group the Australian Industry Greenhouse Network's last two chief executive officers were ACIL Tasman consultants and the organisations shared an office.[12]

In the South Australian state election, 2018, the Liberal Party was required to issue a retraction by the electoral commissioner after they misrepresented ACIL Allen modelling.[13]

References

  1. 1 2 "ACIL and Allen join forces". Financial Review. 2013-02-21. Retrieved 2018-07-19.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Cahill, Damien C (2004). The radical neo-liberal movement as a hegemonic force in Australia, 1976-1996 (Thesis). University of Wollongong. p. 114, 120-121, 207-208, 280, 313-316.
  3. 1 2 Sharon., Beder, (2006). Free market missionaries : the corporate manipulation of community values. London: Earthscan. pp. 138–139. ISBN 9781849771405. OCLC 74813306.
  4. ↑ "The ACIL Tasman Merger" (PDF).
  5. ↑ "ACIL Tasman". 2009-01-06. Retrieved 2018-07-19.
  6. ↑ "CEO steps down over email scandal - Breaking - Technology - smh.com.au". www.smh.com.au. Retrieved 2018-07-19.
  7. ↑ "Home - Acil Allen Consulting". www.acilallen.com.au. Retrieved 2018-06-20.
  8. ↑ Ross Parish (March 1994). "Comments on ACIL: Smoking: Costs and Benefits for Australia". www.industrydocumentslibrary.ucsf.edu. Retrieved 2018-06-20.
  9. ↑ Ann Daw (1994-04-25). "Re:ACIL Report". www.industrydocumentslibrary.ucsf.edu. Retrieved 2018-06-20.
  10. ↑ Bruce Beardmore (20 April 1994). "ACIL Report". www.industrydocumentslibrary.ucsf.edu. Retrieved 2018-06-20.
  11. ↑ Anne Okoniewski (1994-08-29). "Facsimile cover sheet". www.industrydocumentslibrary.ucsf.edu. Retrieved 2018-06-20.
  12. ↑ Edis, Tristan (2012-10-17). "ACIL Tasman - Confessions of an economic hit…sorry, miss man". The Australian.
  13. ↑ "Marshall doubles down on energy claims as Electoral Commissioner flexes muscles - InDaily". InDaily. 2018-03-14. Retrieved 2018-07-19.
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