David Van’s short four-year career as a senator has proven bumpy, but the controversial, suddenly exiled Liberal representative also had a bumpy ride in his time as a spin doctor before representative politics.
Margin Call has learned that Van, 58, also had something of an eventful history as a small-business owner running his own communications advisory shop before he turned to politics to represent the good folk of Victoria as a Liberal senator in mid 2019. One of Van’s myriad corporate entities, a company called The De Wintern Corporation Pty Ltd, was plunged into administration in December 2013, before eventually being deregistered by the corporate regulator in May 2018 – a bit over a year before Van was sworn in as a senator.
Van’s other companies have included The De Wintern Group Pty Ltd, De Wintern Public Affairs Pty Ltd, De Wintern Pty Ltd and Campaign Pty Ltd, several of which have also now been deregistered.
Van’s De Wintern Corporation, of which he was sole director, secretary and only ordinary shareholder, fell over with debts amounting to almost $900,000, according to documents lodged by the failed company’s external administrator, Adam Shepard of insolvency firm Fransworth Shepard.
By the end of the administration process, Van proposed a deed of company arrangement that would see him effectively regain ownership of the company, which was accepted.
A pool of funds totalling just over $71,000 was distributed with unsecured creditors expected to receive 5c for every dollar they were owed.
One Hong Kong-registered creditor company subject to the deed, The Reputation Group (Asia) Ltd, claimed it was owed $100,000 by Van’s company. This company would have received only $5000 from its claim. Ouch.
Senator Van did not respond to a request for comment.
Legal support
In his battle to salvage his reputation and political career, Senator Van is being flanked by two powerful female lawyers.
We have heard Van, who lives in inner Melbourne’s St Kilda, describe his “life partner” wife Nerilee Rockman as “one of Australia’s most talented corporate women”.
“I admire how she has never let gender get in the way of her success, even while working in a male-dominated industry,” Van said of Rockman in his maiden speech to the upper house.
If Van needs a sounding board, Rockman would be a good place to start.
She’s worked as wise counsel to international energy and mining companies including Mobil and the now defunct WMC.
And for the past almost three decades she has worked in a range of senior legal roles at $10bn international gold miner Anglo Gold Ashanti, including as general counsel for the group’s Australasian operations and now as the wider group’s second most senior legal officer.
Rockman is much more than a political handbag in a sparkly dress hanging off the arm of a senator at the likes of Canberra’s Midwinter Ball.
The couple’s portfolio of residential real estate in Melbourne is all in Rockman’s name alone, including their historic two-storey terrace home and two investment properties, none of which are required to be disclosed by Van to the Senate (in contrast to more rigorous disclosure obligations for members of the House of Representatives).
Van also wasted no time enlisted Australia’s go-to reputational risk lawyer, Rebekah Giles of Company Giles, in his fight. Her work includes a letter to Senator Lidia Thorpe on behalf of Van demanding she withdraw her allegations that Van sexually assaulted her in a stairwell in Parliament House in 2021. Van has rejected all allegations.
Giles’ other high-profile clients have included former attorney-general Christian Porter, Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young, former Liberal staffer Brittany Higgins and former Australia Post chief Christine Holgate.
Reserve renovation
All the talk of the blowout in the cost of overhauling the Reserve Bank’s Martin Place headquarters to something like half a billion dollars reminded us of the central bank’s other prime piece of Harbour City real estate, the HC Coombs Centre at Kirribilli.
Governor Phil Lowe’s RBA, which is self-funding, owns the historic former guesthouse outright, near to the Prime Minister’s Kirribilli House and Governor-General’s Admiralty House.
The centre, named for the first RBA governor H. C. ‘‘Nugget’’ Coombs, is now a conference facility and has just been renovated under a contract awarded to the Schiavello group. Think lots of glass and steel slapped onto and inside the 31-guest room facility.
So we checked in with Lowe’s people on where the reno was at and whether it had come in on budget.
“The renovation of the HC Coombs Centre was completed in May 2022,” the RBA said.
“This included upgrading base building infrastructure that was at end-of-life, improving sustainability features, increasing the centre’s capacity, upgrading fixtures and fittings and improving its functionality to meet current and future needs.
“The project was delivered within the approved budget,” which we hear was $16m. Whether that was the “approved budget” from the outset is another matter. At least it’s an appreciating asset.
Taylor’s tumble
Angus Taylor has this week tackled Treasurer Jim Chalmers and the Albanese government from the front bench with one hand effectively tied behind his back, though the government might argue the Member for Hume’s been doing that for a while now anyway.
Monday’s King’s Birthday public holiday was eventful for keen cyclist and triathlete Taylor, who had a major stack on his two wheeler while cruising around the roads of his electorate just outside Goulburn.
Sore and sorry, the opposition Treasury spokesman got on with the job of commuting to Canberra for the unfolding sitting week, only to emerge on Tuesday with a heavily swollen and bruised left arm.
Concerned that the limb may be broken, staffers encouraged Taylor, who takes to his bike at every opportunity, to have the injury checked.
A trip that day to Canberra’s Calvary Public Hospital – controversially just taken over by the ACT government – confirmed that indeed Taylor had not one, but two, broken bones in his arm, with medical staff returning him to the parliament sporting a plaster cast and sling.
Taylor hopes to participate in the annual Pollie Pedal, a long-distance fundraising bike ride, set for October, but his preparation is restricted for the time being to a stationary bike.
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