A New South Wales inquiry into the allocation of more than $252m of local government grants has heard the premier, Gladys Berejiklian, announced $255,000 for a council in the seat of Wagga Wagga during the 2018 byelection, months before the application was lodged and processed.
The inquiry on Wednesday was also told there was no paperwork available regarding the grants scheme from either the Office of Local Government or the deputy premier’s office. It has previously been revealed paperwork and records from the premier’s office were shredded and deleted.
The chair of the upper house committee looking into the controversial program, NSW Greens MLC David Shoebridge, has called on Berejiklian to appear before the committee and explain the allocation process.
In relation to the Wagga Wagga grant, Shoebridge said the Independent Commission Against Corruption (Icac) had specifically warned against ministers announcing funding ahead of an assessment by bureaucrats because it placed enormous pressure on them to approve the pre-announced funding.
Staff from Berejiklian’s office have previously given evidence that the working documents in relation to how $140m worth of grants were allocated via her office were shredded or deleted.
A few have been forensically recovered by computer experts and they appear to show the premier was asked to approve the allocations. But Berejiklian has said the assessments were made by the Office of Local Government, not her office.
Berejiklian has also said that pork-barrelling was not illegal and that all political parties engaged in the practice. But Wednesday’s hearing raised further questions.
The former chief of staff to the then local government minister, Gabrielle Upton, agreed that Upton appeared to have signed off on the new guidelines two days after she had already approved a grant under them.
“I can’t think of another example from my time in government of a fund that operated in this manner,” Kevin Wilde said when giving evidence.
Wilde said he did not recall seeing any paperwork to support a $27m grant to Dubbo council and another for $21m. Both were signed off by his minister at the time.
A further $60m was allocated by the deputy premier, John Barilaro, but no paperwork has been recovered to show how the funds were assessed and allocated. Barilaro’s former deputy chief of staff, Laura Clarke, said she understood that grants under the scheme were approved by the Office of Local Government and not politicians.
She was shown several emails she sent to the agency’s chief executive, Tim Hurst, stating her boss had approved funding for individual councils. But Clarke insisted that she understood the agency was the real approver.
In one email, Hurst asked Clarke to “please confirm for our audit records that the deputy premier has approved these project allocations”. She replied: “Yes, confirmed, all approved by the DP.”
So far the premier has declined an invitation to appear before the inquiry although she may face questions about the grants scheme during estimates committees next year. Barilaro and Upton have not yet been formally asked to appear but will receive requests.
The former NSW auditor general Tony Harris told the inquiry on Wednesday: “I don’t think I have seen a program as purely politically administered as this in my time.”
“Stop putting forward the junior staffers,” Shoebridge said. “Come and tell us how you allocated $140m in funds. The invitation is open and if you have a case, premier, come and tell us how you allocated the funds.”
The Stronger Communities fund was originally set up to help councils that were amalgamating cover the costs of merging. But when the government ditched the unpopular policy in 2017 it repurposed the remaining funds and made grants to councils for projects.
The inquiry has been unable to find any new guidelines or assessments of projects funded in the lead up to the 2019 election. The small number of documents produced indicate the projects came from recommendations made by Coalition MPs. More than 95% went to Coalition seats.
Of the four grants that went to Labor seats one went to support Mingara Recreation Club. The club donated $1,133 to the Liberals in June 2018 – consisting of club representatives attending fundraising lunches with ministers – before receiving a grant of $425,000 in August of that year.
The Labor MP Courtney Houssos said of the 25 grants made to councils on the Central Coast 23 were within the seat of Terrigal, held by the Liberals, one to each of Gosford and The Entrance ( both marginal seats) and none went to Wyong and Swansea held by Labor.
