‘Dom does what I ask him to’: Gladys Berejiklian’s explosive tapped phone call

Gladys Berejiklian has responded to a tapped phone call where she told her ex-lover she could get ‘$170 million in five minutes’ from then-treasurer Dominic Perrottet.

Gladys Berejiklian told her secret ex-lover on a tapped phone she could get him “$170 million in five minutes”, a corruption inquiry has heard.

Ms Berejiklian could also be heard saying the then-treasurer, now NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet “just does what I ask him to do”, in the phone call played at the Independent Commission Against Corruption on Friday.

Ms Berejiklian has denied any wrongdoing.

In recordings of a May 2018 phone call played on Friday, Ms Berejiklian could be heard discussing money requests by her then-secret boyfriend, Wagga Wagga MP Daryl Maguire.

Mr Maguire told her he’d “talked to the Treasurer” and asked “how’s my hospital … am I getting my $170 million?”.

The MP went on to tell Ms Berejiklian he only got a promise of funds for graffiti removal.

Gladys Berejiklian said then-Treasurer Dominic Perrottet “just does what I ask him to do”. Picture: NCA NewsWire/Bianca De Marchi

“I said ‘no money for Wagga? You’ll have a f---ing riot on your hand’,” Mr Maguire went on.

“I’ll deal with it … I’ll fix it,” Ms Berejiklian responded.

Two hours later, the pair were recorded speaking on the phone again.

“I’ve already gotten you the Wagga hospital,” Ms Berejiklian told Mr Maguire.

“I just spoke to Dom, and I said just put the (money) in the budget. He goes ’No worries’. He just does what I ask him to do.”

She was also heard saying: “I’ve got you now got you the $170 million in five minutes.”

After listening to the recording, Ms Berejiklian said of herself and Mr Perrottet, “neither of us would have done anything which was not appropriate”.

Former NSW premier Gladys Berejiklian gave evidence on Friday. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Damian Shaw

The counsel assisting the ICAC, Scott Robertson, suggested to Ms Berejiklian that within two hours of the first phone call with Mr Maguire, she “fixed” the issue by “taking steps to have the budget papers changed”.

Ms Berejiklian said doing so would have been impossible without a proper process.

Mr Robertson told the ICAC commissioner there was no suggestion Mr Perrottet had acted improperly.

“There’s no suggestion in any of the material before this commission, in this investigation of any improper conduct on the part of (Mr Perrottet), I just thought I should make that clear,” Mr Robertson said.

A spokesman for Mr Perrottet declined to comment on Friday.

But the NSW Premier was asked about proceedings at today’s press conference.

“I’m not going to give a running commentary on the matters before ICAC," Mr Perrottet said.

“That would be incredibly prejudicial as public hearings are underway and the independent commission will continue to do its work.

“And ultimately, if there's anything the government needs to act on, arising out of those public inquiries, we will."

The ICAC is investigating whether Ms Berejiklian breached the public’s trust in the course of her relationship with Mr Maguire, including whether she had a conflict of interest in handling money requests by him without disclosing their relationship.

Originally published as ‘Dom does what I ask him to’: Gladys Berejiklian’s explosive tapped phone call