The second NSW inquiry into the culture of The Star Entertainment Group will be open to the public, after Adam Bell, SC, who is conducting the probe, deemed the coming hearings to be “in the public interest”.
The recommendation to the NSW regulator was made two days before the chief executive of the embattled casino operator quit. Lawyers from Maddocks assisting Bell wrote to the NSW Independent Casino Commission (NICC) on March 20, advising that Bell believed the majority of the hearings should be made public.
He has also asked for a two-month extension to the original 15-week inquiry.
The second inquiry into Star Entertainment in NSW will now be made public following a request from Adam Bell, SC. Credit: Steven Siewert
The Star’s chief executive Robbie Cooke told staff late on Friday he would step down with a “heavy heart” after 18 months at the battered casino giant. He said he believed The Star would be unlikely to regain its coveted casino licence from the NSW regulator while he was at the helm. Newly minted chair David Forster will act as executive chair until a replacement for Cooke is found.
“It also seems that the Chief Commissioner did not consider I was moving with sufficient speed with the reforms and changes being implemented at The Star – a view with which I respectfully and fundamentally disagree,” Cooke told staff on Monday.
Former chief financial officer Christina Katsibouba also resigned on Friday after pressure from the regulator and investors who believe The Star needs to part with all the executives who had formerly held senior roles before it was disgraced by Bell’s first inquiry. Launched after an investigation by the Herald, The Age and 60 Minutes in 2021, that inquiry confirmed extensive anti-money laundering and counterterrorism failings.
Katsibouba, company secretary Jennie Yuen, head of customer George Hughes and chief of staff Peter Jenkins all retained senior leadership positions at The Star as the second inquiry was announced. The business also promoted Jessica Mellor to head the Gold Coast casino. Mellor was formerly the chief operating officer of the broader business.
But as of Friday, only Yuen and Mellor remain in their positions. Hughes resigned two weeks ago and Jenkins also stepped down on Friday after a decade at the group.
The news of the second state inquiry blindsided The Star’s leadership last month, and was requested by the head of the NSW regulator, Philip Crawford, who said at the time he was not convinced The Star had fully committed to the cultural change required to regain its licence to operate independently.
Revoking the casino’s licence is one of five options that will be considered by the regulator when it receives the findings of the latest Bell inquiry. Other options available are that the inquiry provide conditional approval for The Star to operate under the eye of an independent monitor (as is the situation at rival Crown Sydney) or that it maintains its casino licence suspension and seeks cabinet approval to extend the tenure of the special manager for a fourth term.
The NICC appointed special manager Nicholas Weeks to oversee The Star for a period of 90 days in 2022 and the regulator said on Monday it intended to extend Weeks’ role until September 30 to “allow the extra time needed to complete the inquiry and for the NICC to consider Bell’s report”.
“Mr Weeks’ continued managership is essential to enable the casino to remain operational while the inquiry is conducted, and Mr Bell’s report delivered,” a spokesperson for the regulator said.
The hearings, initially expected to be held privately, are due to begin in mid-April. Bell’s final report is due on July 31.
The Star told the ASX on Monday it welcomed the opportunity to demonstrate it can regain suitability and will “do all in its power to work co-operatively with all its regulators, including the NICC and its appointed manager, as well as continuing to participate in an open, transparent and facilitative manner”.
The Star’s share price fell 2.8 per cent on Monday to 52¢. The price of the shares have fallen by 60 per cent over the past 12 months and have not exceeded $1 since June last year.
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