The appointment of former NSW deputy premier John Barilaro to a plum US trade commissioner role had all the trademarks of a “job for the boys”, an inquiry has found.
The parliamentary inquiry, chaired by Greens MP Cate Faehrmann, investigated how the former Nationals MP was selected as the NSW Senior Trade and Investment Commissioner (STIC), a $500,000-a-year posting, in June last year.
In an interim report released today, Faehrmann wrote the recruitment process was “flawed”, noting a lack of “transparency and integrity”.
“Despite assurances from senior public servants and ministers that the appointment process was conducted by the public service under a merit-based process, it is clear that the process was flawed and that the Executive was not at arm’s length from the process,” she wrote.
The inquiry also raised questions about the “intersection points” between former trade minister Stuart Ayres, former minister Eleni Petinos and senior public servant Amy Brown.
”The committee found that when it comes to the Senior Trade and Investment Commissioner recruitment processes, there was a pattern of Ministerial interference and lack of transparency conducted by the Government,” Faehrmann said.
The inquiry found the appointment of Barilaro was brought without a “reasonable basis” and “unnecessary haste”.
It also found failures to disclose West’s appointment to the role, confusion among the Investment NSW ranks and that Barilaro’s actions created a vacancy for him to take up the plum job.
The committee said the conversations between Ayres and Barilaro about the New York trade posting showed “poor judgement” and were “inappropriate”.
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It also found Ayres was not at “arm’s length” during the recruitment process and “misled the public” when answering questions about Barilaro being chosen for the job.
The final report will be tabled towards the end of February.
The government also announced policy changes to the ministerial code of conduct, ethics advice and the recruitment process for the trade commissioner roles.
Barilaro withdrew from the position within weeks of his appointment amid the ongoing controversy.
Meanwhile, the scrutiny for Barilaro is not yet over after the state’s opposition leader Chris Minns called on Barilaro to explain why his office intervened in the $100 million Black Summer bushfire recovery program.
The matter has been referred to the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) after the government handed over the auditor-general’s report into the scheme.
Barilaro has also been before the courts over the alleged assault of a camera operator in Manly last year.
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