Victoria’s anti-corruption watchdog has found state government ministers and officials breached their duties when they improperly awarded a $1.2 million contract to a union ahead of the 2018 election.
That year, the Department of Health and Human Services entered into the contract with the Health Education Federation (HEF) to provide training to health workers.
The HEF was a new entity of the Health Workers Union (HWU).
In a report tabled in parliament today, the Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission’s (IBAC) Operation Daintree found the decision to award the contract to the HEF did not follow a competitive tender process and a senior adviser to the then-health minister Jill Hennessy had improperly influenced the decision.
Premier Daniel Andrews and former health ministers Hennessy and Jenny Mikakos were all cleared of corrupt conduct by the investigation but strongly rebuked in the report for the “failings” and “unethical conduct” that led to the contract’s awarding.
IBAC acting commissioner Stephen Farrow said the investigation revealed breaches of duties and obligations of ministers, ministerial advisers and senior public servants.
“Our investigation showed that the HWU was given privileged access and favourable treatment in its access to ministerial offices,” he said.
“The proposal from HEF raised a conflict between the government’s interest in procuring the most suitable supplier for the training and the governing party’s interest in assisting an affiliated union.
“This conflict of interest was not properly managed or declared.”
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He said advisers in the premier’s private office and the health minister’s office had “interfered” to ensure the contract continued.
“The DHHS awarded the contract to HEF without a competitive procurement process due to senior staff in the department believing it was the minister’s and government’s preference, and because of ongoing pressure from both the Minister for Health’s advisor and secretary of the union,” Farrow said.
“This conduct by senior public servants falls short of the required Victorian public sector standards.”
IBAC has made 17 recommendations to the government following the report.
It said the recommendations will provide a clear understanding to ministers of their obligations and of their accountability for the management of ministerial staff.
The report also said the role of ministerial advisers should be more transparent and accountable.
IBAC called on the government to report back on their response to the recommendations by October 31 this year, and then again by June 30 next year.
Andrews is set to speak later this morning.
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