Colin Ashworth
Scandals & the public record
Based in Brisbane
A former court reporter, Colin covers cartels, frauds and royal commissions with the caution the subject demands. He attributes everything and presumes innocence until a court decides otherwise.
15 published articles · most recent August 20, 2026
A former court reporter, Colin covers cartels, frauds and royal commissions with the caution the subject demands. He attributes everything and presumes innocence until a court decides otherwise.
Articles by Colin Ashworth
Freedom Foods to Noumi: inside the write-down that gutted a food stockHow Freedom Foods went from ASX darling to a $590m write-down and a rebrand as Noumi, and what the regulators found along the way.
The Plutus Payroll fraud: how a payroll company became a $105m tax schemeInside the Plutus Payroll fraud: the second-tier company structure that siphoned PAYG withholding tax, the arrests, and what the courts found.
Qantas and the sacked ground crew: what the High Court actually foundThe High Court found Qantas broke the law by outsourcing 1,700 ground handling jobs. Here's what the courts found, and what it didn't decide.
Star Entertainment: what the inquiries found, and what the licence costThe Bell review and state inquiries into Star Entertainment exposed years of money-laundering failures. Here's what was found, and what it cost the casino group.
The PwC tax leak: how confidential Treasury advice ended up helping clients dodge new lawsHow confidential government tax-policy consultations at PwC were allegedly used to help clients sidestep new anti-avoidance laws, and what the Senate inquiry and fallout revealed.
Rio Tinto and Juukan Gorge: how one blast ended three careersRio Tinto destroyed a 46,000-year-old rock shelter to expand an iron ore mine. A parliamentary inquiry, and the fallout, followed.
Firepower: the fuel pill scheme that burned through millions before it collapsedFirepower promised a pill that would slash fuel bills and sponsored Australian sport. It collapsed owing hundreds of millions, and ASIC pursued its director for years.
James Hardie and asbestos: the compensation scandal that changed Australian corporate lawThe James Hardie asbestos compensation controversy produced one of Australia's most significant corporate governance inquiries. A report from the public record.
Crown Resorts: what the inquiries found, and what it costThree separate public inquiries found Crown Resorts unsuitable to hold casino licences. This is what the Bergin Inquiry and its successors established, and how the findings reshaped Australian gambling.
The Hayne Royal Commission: what it found, and what changedThe 2018 Banking Royal Commission exposed systemic misconduct across Australia's financial sector. Here's what Commissioner Hayne actually found, and what the law required afterwards.
AWB and the oil-for-wheat scandal: how Australia's wheat exporter paid kickbacks to Saddam HusseinThe Cole Inquiry found AWB Limited paid more than $290 million in illegal kickbacks to the Iraqi regime, breaching UN sanctions. Here's how it unravelled.
CBA and AUSTRAC: how 53,750 breaches led to Australia's largest-ever civil penaltyIn 2018, Commonwealth Bank settled with AUSTRAC for $700 million over systematic anti-money-laundering failures. Here's what the record penalty revealed about compliance culture.
The Visy-Amcor cartel: what the Federal Court actually foundThe ACCC's action against Visy and Amcor produced record civil penalties and a landmark Federal Court judgment in 2007. Here is what the court record shows.
AMP and fees for no service: the conduct the Banking Royal Commission exposedThe 2018 Banking Royal Commission found AMP had charged customers for advice they never received — and then misled the regulator about it. Here is what the record shows.
7-Eleven's wage theft: how a convenience store empire shortchanged thousands of workersThe 2015 exposé of systematic wage underpayment across 7-Eleven's Australian franchise network triggered one of the country's largest worker repayment schemes. Here's what the record shows.