Rita Panahi: Andrews must answer questions — and not just on Crown

The Coate inquiry uncritically accepted the testimony of bureaucrats and politicians, but in NSW, Bergin was forensic in uncovering the truth.

In the end Daniel Andrews had no option but to call a royal commission into Crown casino after being embarrassed by the Bergin inquiry in NSW which found the gambling giant was not fit to hold a gaming licence.

But the question remains why did it take an inquiry in another state to uncover dodgy dealings happening under Andrews’ nose in Melbourne?

An even bigger question is how the Andrews government justifies its failure to call a royal commission into the catastrophic failures of the state’s hotel quarantine and contact tracing programs.

Surely the disastrous outcome of the state’s botched COVID-19 response, including the loss of more than 800 lives, countless livelihoods and widespread societal harm, warrants a proper investigation.

The premier may talk a tough game when it comes to Crown — on Tuesday he promised to tear up the company’s casino licence if the royal commission recommended it — but it’s difficult not to conclude he has treated the gambling behemoth as above the law.

Daniel Andrews had no option but to call a royal commission into Crown casino. Picture: Getty Images

The final report by former NSW Supreme Court chief judge Commissioner Patricia Bergin, was damning not only for Crown but for the sleep-at-the-wheel Andrews government, which along with the Victorian Commission for Gambling and Liquor Regulation had consistently failed to respond to serious allegations of wrongdoing at the Melbourne casino.

Why Crown Resorts got such a dream run from the state government is one of many questions that require answering.

Crown’s political links run deep on both sides of the political aisle; the company has been clever in fostering relationships with key political operatives.

Among the well-connected political heavyweights at Crown Resorts are former Liberal federal communications minister Helen Coonan, former Australian Labor Party national secretary Karl Bitar and until recently former Labor federal minister under Kevin Rudd and Julia Gillard, Mark Arbib who left the company late last year before Bergin’s final report was handed down.

Watching Bergin’s work during the Crown inquiry was a thing of a beauty. The manner in which she, together with Counsel assisting the inquiry Scott Aspinall, took apart former AFL chief executive Andrew Demetriou during his testimony was masterful.

Bergin’s report referred to his “bizarre” and “unedifying” performance where he appeared to be clueless about what was occurring under his watch. He told the inquiry he didn’t bother looking at the accounts because he’s not an accountant. Not surprisingly Demetriou stepped down as Crown Resorts director less than a week after Bergin’s final report was released.

You don’t have to be a gambler to appreciate what the Crown complex offers. Picture: David Geraghty

The exodus from Crown has so far included Demetriou’s fellow board members Guy Jalland, Michael Johnston and Harold Mitchell, along with CEO Ken Barton.

Crown’s saviour may very well be its new executive chairman, Coonan, who took over the reins earlier this month. Indeed, the former Howard government minister was singled out for praise by Commissioner Bergin who commended her “character, honesty and integrity”.

There’s no doubt Crown Resorts has added something special to Melbourne; you don’t have to be a gambler to appreciate what the complex offers. More than 16,000 Victorians are employed by Crown casino and for their sake alone one can only hope the company makes the necessary changes to hold on to its gaming licence.

Former federal court judge Raymond Finkelstein QC has been appointed commissioner to head the inquiry.

Finkelstein is somewhat of a Labor favourite and ran the Gillard government’s media inquiry where his sinister sounding media-cop recommendations were thankfully ignored. He was also the legal expert who advised Andrews before the 2014 election that the East-West contracts were not enforceable or as the then opposition leader claimed “not worth the paper they’re written on”.

Commissioner Patricia Bergin was fearless and forensic in uncovering the truth.

In the end Victorian taxpayers paid more than $1bn to not have a desperately needed road built. Finkelstein’s report is due on August 1 this year and Victorians will hope, like Bergin, he gets to the heart of the matter.

Bergin’s commanding display during the NSW inquiry was spectacularly at odds with what we saw in Melbourne during the Coate inquiry into hotel quarantine.

While the Coate board of inquiry uncritically accepted the testimony of bureaucrats and politicians, Bergin was fearless and forensic in uncovering the truth.

The toothless Coate fiasco cost taxpayers more than $13m, when factoring in the government’s own legal costs, but failed to uncover basic truths such as who authorised the use of private security.

It’s unlikely Andrews would still be Premier if Bergin was heading a royal commission or judicial inquiry into Victoria’s hotel quarantine program.