KordaMentha auditors at Royal Adelaide Hospital to face parliamentary committee

The taxpayer-funded corporate administrators hired to fix SA Health’s budget crisis will face questioning about its plan, and whether its workers are suitable for the job, on Monday.

• Two KordaMentha auditors paid $220k for two weeks work at RAH
• Plan for KordaMentha to run finances at Central Adelaide Health Network
• KordaMentha placed in charge of health network’s budget

The taxpayer-funded corporate administrators hired to fix SA Health’s budget crisis will face questioning about its plan, and whether its workers are suitable for the job, on Monday.

The State Government is paying KordaMentha $18.9 million to fix the Central Adelaide Local Health Network and save $277 million over three years. The Advertiser has revealed its staff are being paid up to $6492 a day.

State Parliament’s Budget and Finance Committee will on Monday question Melbourne-based partners Mark KordaMentha and Chris Martin, who are heading the project.

Questioning will centre on plans to rein in debt and whether hospital beds will be closed and services cut.

Ahead of the committee hearing, the Opposition has pointed to the social media use of KordaMentha’s corporate director, James Wagg — who earns $4846 a day — including pictures he posted of a sex toy prank and drunken partying.

Although many of the pictures were posted several years ago, some were deleted shortly after The Advertiser asked questions of the Government and KordaMentha.

Neither Mr Wagg nor Mr Martin responded to inquiries while a KordaMentha spokesman was unavailable.

Labor health spokesman Chris Picton questioned whether “the right people with the right focus on patient confidentiality” were appointed to the review.

“South Australians are not only handing over millions to this private firm, we are trusting them with decisions about our hospitals and our patients,” he said.

“They will likely have access to very sensitive private information and we need to know it is in safe hands.”

Health Minister Stephen Wade rejected Mr Picton’s “low-rent smear”.

“Labor didn’t have a problem with KordaMentha when they were saving Whyalla (steelworks) and now they seem intent on smearing a globally-respected company,” he said.