Not for the first time we find ourselves asking if NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian, former winner of the AFR’s “Woman who saved Australia” award, just has a predilection for bad boys — or is personally corrupt.
Since her sensational appearance before the Independent Commission Against Corruption last year (ICAC), she has asserted that “the premier was not under investigation nor was she an adversely affected person for the purpose of the [ICAC] investigation”.
Since then, ICAC has extended its investigation into matters relating to Berejiklian’s former secret boyfriend, then-MP Daryl Maguire, specifically in relation to the Australian Clay Target Association (ACTA). That organisation was the recipient in 2017 of a $5.5 million grant from the Regional Growth Environment and Tourism Fund to build a conference centre in Maguire’s electorate, which was overseen by the NSW treasurer — that is, Berejiklian.
Berejiklian has previously distanced herself from the grant approval process without directly addressing the question of whether she ever spoke with Maguire about it.
What has now come out, courtesy of digging by Greens MLC David Shoebridge, suggests something rather more involved. Apparently Maguire wrote to Berejiklian in January 2016 seeking funding for ACTA. She responded formally, thanking Maguire and pointing him to the sports minister who would respond for the government.
In December 2016 the Expenditure Review Committee, which Berejilklian chaired as treasurer, reserved funding for the ACTA grant. The next step was a detailed cost-benefit analysis, which must produce a costs-to-benefits ratio score of more than one. In April 2017 the Department of Industry gave the proposal a 0.88 score — a clear fail.
By this time Berejiklian had become premier. In June of that year, a letter from Regional NSW (a section within the Department of Premier and Cabinet) to Infrastructure NSW requested that the ACTA grant application be reconsidered, noting that an updated business case had been provided by ACTA and assessed by the Investment Appraisal Unit “following a request by the premier”.
Later in June, the deputy secretary of Regional NSW emailed a senior staffer in Berejiklian’s office saying that he had been asked to follow up on the application “as the local member [Maguire] has asked”. Infrastructure NSW had advised that it was with the treasurer for signing and would then be issued. The deputy secretary concluded: “Just wanted you in the loop given premier’s interest.”
The ACTA proposal was reassessed in July 2017 and now got a score of 1.10, taking it over the threshold for approval. Glory be.
That is the critical sequence of events over an 18 month period from Maguire’s first formal request to Berejiklian for help, to the final approval of the grant. Maguire, as local MP, had obvious reasons for wanting the project funded. According to evidence given to ICAC, he also tried to get a small commission for himself for securing the money (there is no suggestion Berejiklian knew about this).
Throughout this period, Maguire and Berejiklian were in a relationship, the existence of which she did not disclose until 2020. She has maintained that, although her personal judgement in shacking up with Maguire was terrible, she was untouched by his graphic and serial corruption.
That was perhaps tenable in the absence of any direct evidence to the contrary, but now we have words on paper that raise very specific questions about a very specific deal.
A large grant of public money was given to a project which had clearly failed the test when conducted at arms’ length. The premier requested that the test be attempted again, and the evidence suggests she was taking particular interest in it. The test was passed, and the public money flowed, as the premier’s secret boyfriend had been seeking all along.
The conflict of interest is obvious. If she didn’t disclose it, that is scandalous. Unless the documentary evidence is flat wrong (that is, the references in the correspondence to “the premier” were mistaken, because she actually knew nothing about any of it), then Berejiklian’s actions may have been a flagrant breach of the most basic standards of ministerial conduct.
As to whether it was corrupt, the ICAC Act defines corrupt conduct very widely. If Berejiklian did intervene in the ACTA grant process without disclosing her personal interest, then that becomes a very real question.
That is for ICAC to consider if it takes this matter on. Berejiklian’s response so far has been dismissive, telling the ABC’s Paul Farrell (who broke the story) that “firstly, the proposition you’re putting is absolutely ridiculous, and secondly, all proper processes were followed, and that’s all I’ll say on the matter thank you”.
When Farrell pressed the question again, the premier said, “I refer to my previous answer, and please respect this press conference”.
Showing some respect to the people of NSW by answering the valid questions the premier is being asked would be nice.
Respect needs to be earned but the time has passed as the corruption stench is heavily upon Berejiklian.
The press conferences are agony to watch as she delivers the daily infection numbers & deaths. Simultaneously, she resists constructive ideas on how to contain the burgeoning breakouts of Covid despite witnessing more successful strategies in every other state in Australia.
Notable – well one of the many thing that are is her 31/7 presser during which she several times said NSW doesn’t want to hop in and out of lockdowns as, and said with disdain, that is no way to live. This is the most transparent of indications living with the virus was her plan from the outset as it it outright repudiates the agree national strategy of hopping into lockdowns and getting out quickly.
Re corruption I felt her saying I told him to not talk to me about it implicated her as if didn’t suspect what was coming why would anyone say that?
Thank you for expressing this thought about NSW handling of the Covid19 outbreak, because I had been harbouring that suspicion too.
I think that they were going to let this run with the “Oops, we didn’t understand the Delta strain”.
I think that after polling they found that the next election could be as good for them as the Liberal Party in WA if the public got wind of this and so they reversed course.
I think that is why the Upper house inquiry wanted Kerry Chant to answer her own questions and why “Health Hazzard” was willing to start WW111 rather than let her.
Dr Chant’s body language sitting next to Hazzard said everything about her regard for him. Cringed with discomfort.
Body language? The lady literally closed her eyes the first time he wouldn’t let her answer and my housemate’s sure she saw an eye roll.
NSW Coalition – The State of Corruption.
She’s a crook. Of course she interfered. Let’s hope it brings her down
C’mon mate, it’s not as if it’s an expensive, overlooked bottle of wine…….
Crooked Gladys? Surely not in NSW, the gold standard state?
“Gold standard” …. as in as “judged by Morrison”?
All that glisters is not gold standard.
Pot and kettle?
AND one of the long term scribblers here… can’t quite recall his name but he could always be relied upon, when boosting Shredder to insert a dig, however irrelevant and unrelated, at Labor.
It’s a bugger when the cows come home to roost, ain’t it?
A gold standard of corruption LNP style
Just what is meant by ‘respect the press conference’. Weird.
“Awaiting for approval”?
Well how about :-
Gladys “Mudguard” Berejiklian? “Shiny on top and ‘mud’ underneath”?
…. “Before you go any further, don’t go there …. (this phone might be bugged).”?
Is she corrupt, or it “just” her judgement that is?
FFS ‘Pork barreling’s all right because everyone does it’????
The part of this whole thing is for every dodgy deal done, there is some very worthwhile project which misses out.
The biggest problem is that if any deserving project speaks up, then the implicit threat is that they will miss out next time too.
“Porky Barilaro” made that very clear.
The really tragic (for humanity, and the environment in which it exists) ironic aspect about that sort of “system” is that dead-beat clowns like “Porky Barrels ‘R Us” get to decide on the worthiness of any such endeavors – purely along political lines.