School Infrastructure NSW ICAC inquiry examines former chief’s Formula 1 Grand Prix gift

Former School Infrastructure NSW chief executive Anthony Manning accepted free tickets to multiple motorsport events at a contractor’s expense, a corruption inquiry has heard.

Former School Infrastructure NSW boss Anthony Manning accepted undeclared free motorsport tickets from a contractor, knowing it breached rules, a corruption inquiry has heard.

Former School Infrastructure NSW chief executive Anthony Manning accepted free tickets to multiple motorsport events at a contractor’s expense and did not declare them, despite knowing that doing so would be a breach of his obligations, a corruption inquiry has heard.

Mr Manning has given a fourth day of evidence to the Independent Commission Against Corruption’s probe into his awarding of multi-million-dollar contracts to friends and ex-colleagues, as well as allegations of reprisal action against whistleblowers.

In his testimony on Tuesday, Mr Manning said he had accepted tickets to the Formula One Australian Grand Prix, offered to him by the CEO of consultancy firm Johnstaff, on two occasions during his tenure at the organisation.

School Infrastructure NSW (SINSW) engaged Johnstaff regularly during Mr Manning’s tenure, to the tune of millions.

The gifted grandstand tickets were “reasonably” good, Mr Manning said – “not the Paddock Club” – and “might” have included hospitality.

Former School Infrastructure NSW chief executive Anthony Manning testifies to an ICAC inquiry into his hiring practices. Picture: Independent Commission Against Corruption.

The inquiry had earlier heard evidence that while employed by Health Infrastructure NSW in 2009, Mr Manning had undertaken the ICAC’s own anti-corruption training for individuals working in procurement.

Counsel assisting the ICAC Jamie Darams SC questioned Mr Manning as to why he didn’t declare the gift.

“I don’t know, I just didn’t,” he replied.

“Did you know that you had an obligation to do that?” Mr Darams pressed.

“I would’ve done,” Mr Manning said.

The inquiry was also shown a letter from Johnstaff CEO Tim McCue to the ICAC confirming Mr Manning had in fact been invited to three Grand Prix events, at a cost of $3500 to the company.

In his testimony on Anthony Manning said he had accepted tickets to the Formula One Australian Grand Prixe. Picture: AAP Image/James Ross

The ex-school infrastructure chief was also pressed on his relationship with strategic communications advisor Kathy Jones, whose companies would be paid almost $9 million by the time Mr Manning left the organisation in 2024.

Ms Jones met with Mr Manning on 25 September 2017 and sent him her proposed scope of work and associated fees – a total of $110,400 for herself and a subordinate to work for SINSW four days a month for six months – the next day.

The initial contract, tendered to the inquiry, listed a three-word job description: “Communications Support services”.

Until February 2024, Anthony Manning was the Chief Executive of School Infrastructure NSW, which builds new government schools.

Mr Darams suggested that the description of services provided was “as broad as you can get”, and pressed Mr Manning as to why he never described in writing “with some more specificity” the “issues” that Ms Jones was brought on board to address.

Mr Manning said Ms Jones’ task in communication was a “lift of what we had done previously at Health Infrastructure” in mitigating problems with community consultation and “pissing off” the general public.

“There’s plenty of things I would know, but it doesn’t necessarily mean that I’d have written it down,” he told the inquiry.