Trade Minister Stuart Ayres Ayres’ alleged role in Barilaro scandal Trade Commissioner scandal a ‘frustrating’ distraction‘: Premier

After an overseas trade trip overshadowed by events at home, NSW Premier and under-fire Trade Minister Stuart Ayres will return to Australia to increasing internal anger.

Multiple scandals facing the state government back home have been a “frustrating” distraction overshadowing a major trade mission, Premier Dominic Perrottet says.

Mr Perrottet and his under-fire Trade Minister Stuart Ayres will land back in Sydney on Saturday night amid increasing internal anger over Mr Ayres’ involvement in the appointment of former Deputy Premier John Barilaro to a $500,000-a-year New York trade role.

On Friday, Mr Ayres said he was not considering his future as the Deputy Liberal leader despite chatter among his colleagues that he might need to go.

Privately, senior Liberals believe Mr Ayres is continuing to damage the government by digging in and refusing to accept any responsibility for the Trade Commissioner scandal.

Mr Perrottet repeated his position that he will not take any action in relation to the appointment until he receives the findings of an independent review into the process.

Premier Dominic Perrottet, right, and Trade minister Stuart Ayres open the NSW government's trade and investment office in Mumbai on Thursday. Picture: James O’Doherty / Daily Telegraph.

He rejected suggestions that waiting for those findings before taking action is causing further damage to his government.

Mr Perrottet said it was important for him to follow proper “process” and doing “what is right,” even if that creates “political challenges” in the short term.

Trade Minister Stuart Ayres has denied influencing the hiring decision. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Gaye Gerard

Mr Ayres on Friday maintained that the recruitment process which appointed Mr Barilaro was done independently of government, and overseen by Investment NSW CEO Amy Brown.

That is despite documents released to parliament revealing Mr Ayres spoke to Ms Brown about potential candidates, and even asked for one person onto the “short shortlist” for the New York role.

“I have responded to the information, the updates, the briefs that are provided by the public service, that is all I have done,” Mr Ayres said.

He said he only “endorsed the position” that Mr Barilaro had “secured the position” when the process had been completed.

Former deputy premier John Barilaro was awarded the role but withdrew. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Gaye Gerard.

AYRES’ ‘FINGERPRINTS ALL OVER’ SELECTION

On Thursday Mr Ayres was accused of having his “fingerprints all over” the selection of the New York trade commissioner role, after newly released documents revealed his ‘short shortlist’ instructions.

An email by Investment NSW CEO Amy Brown on February 8 said she had “run through the ‘long’ shortlist” for the New York job with Mr Ayres.

“He’d like to add (redacted) to the short shortlist please,” she wrote.

Earlier in the week he had said: “I have not under any circumstances influenced the decisions of Amy Brown in who she is selecting as senior executives of the public services”.

Shadow Treasurer Daniel Mookhey said on Thursday that the latest documents showed the Minister had misled the public.

“It is now clear that Stuart Ayres has misled the public … he has very serious questions to answer,” Mr Mookhey said. “Stuart Ayres hasn’t been arm’s length from this process — he’s had his fingerprints all over this process from the moment he became the Minister for Trade.

“Stuart Ayres was telling Amy Brown who should be on the short shortlist. It wasn’t an independent recruiter who was going through all the people who had applied. It was Stuart Ayres putting forward his preferred candidate for this job.”

Speaking from India, Mr Ayres said the redacted name added to the shortlist was not that of John Barilaro.

He said Ms Brown wanted the name added.

“I think this was a conversation that Amy Brown had with me to update on the process and there was a name Amy discussed about adding to the shortlist and she went and did that,” he said.

He denied the briefing showed that he was involved in the recruitment process. “These are decisions that are still made by Amy Brown,” he said. “Adding names to a list is her decision.”

Daniel Mookhey at the inquiry investigating the appointment of former deputy premier John Barilaro to the US trade commissioner role. Picture: NCA NewsWire / James Gourley

Investment NSW also denied a meeting between Mr Ayres and Mr Barilaro ever took place, despite a government document stating the two had met.

A briefing note contained in government documents for Investment NSW chief executive Ms Brown said: “Mr Barilaro has now met with the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Investment, the Hon Stuart Ayres MP who has supported his appointment.”

On Thursday afternoon, Investment NSW claimed it was a “clerical error”, and the two hadn’t met over the role.

“Investment NSW can confirm that an internal CEO briefing cover note contained a clerical error, incorrectly stating that the Minister for Enterprise, Investment and Trade had met with Mr Barilaro as part of the STIC Americas recruitment process,” an Investment NSW spokesman said.

Investment NSW CEO Amy Brown has already appeared before the inquiry

Labor has confirmed Mr Barilaro will be called to give evidence to a parliamentary inquiry into his appointment on August 8.

Mr Barilaro told The Daily Telegraph he was yet to receive a formal invitation and had only read about it in the media.

“As I have publicly stated, I’ve been available to attend the inquiry for weeks, with the committee refusing to call me,” he said.

“I’m yet to receive a formal invitation at this stage, and I am disappointed that I have to read about it in the media.

“Labor chooses to play this out in the media, rather than following procedural fairness.”

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