State Government to pursue Eddie Obeid for millions

The State Government will pursue corrupt ALP powerbroker Eddie Obeid for millions of dollars of taxpayer money spent defending public officials against failed court action he took against them.

The State Government will pursue corrupt ALP powerbroker Eddie Obeid for millions of dollars of taxpayer money spent defending public officials against failed court action he took against them.

It will seek court orders to recover $3.7 million spent defending public integrity officials including ICAC officials.

Following his conviction for misconduct in public office, Labor Minister Obeid unsuccessfully sued ICAC commissioners, officers and senior counsels, forcing the NSW Government to incur legal bills totalling $7.9 million.

Eddie Obeid is being pursued for millions of dollars of taxpayer dollars. Picture: AAP

The government has received advice to initially seek costs relating to two parties sued by Mr Obeid — totalling $3.7 million — with a view to pursuing the remaining costs if the initial application is successful.

NSW Treasurer Dominic Perrottet said the NSW Government would do everything in its power to have these taxpayer funded costs returned.

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“The story of Labor’s corruption in NSW is not ancient history — it is a current affair, and we want this money back so it benefits the community,” Mr Perrottet said.

The NSW Government had been unable to recover costs against Mr Obeid until he had exhausted all avenues for appeal.

The Daily Telegraph revealed on Tuesday that Labor leader Michael Daley signed off on a development application for the Obeid family’s business partners, creating a multimillion-dollar windfall, on land formerly zoned for open space.

Mr Daley’s role in the rezoning and DA approval in 2000 for the controversial Mons Avenue in Maroubra had not been made public before.

NSW Treasurer Dominic Perrottet said the NSW Government would do everything in its power to have the costs returned.

The rezoning alone netted the developers, business partners of the Obeid family, more than $1 million. The 20 townhouse apartments, which were sold at up to $785,000 each, with two sold to ALP MPs Mark Arbib and Eric Roozendaal’s family, with Eddie Obeid’s son Moses renting one of the townhouses for two years.

Mr Perrottet said the financial expenses borne by the taxpayer was “part of the rotten legacy Labor left NSW and even today the people of NSW are picking up the tab for the corrupt practices of former Labor minister Eddie Obeid”.

“This is the same man that Opposition Leader Michael Daley thanked in his first speech to parliament, despite now claiming not to have known him at that time,” he said.

The Crown Solicitor’s Office will now file an “Application for a Gross Sum Cost Order” in the Supreme Court.

The costs in the Obeid case were borne by the Treasury Managed Fund, which is managed by Insurance and Care NSW (icare).