Daniel Andrews dismisses scathing letter from former IBAC commissioner Robert Redlich

Daniel Andrews has refused to engage with scathing criticism from a former head of Victoria’s anti-corruption watchdog.

Daniel Andrews says ‘the government does behave appropriately. There are no findings to the contrary’. Picture Aaron Francis

Daniel Andrews has refused to engage with scathing criticism from the recently departed former commissioner of Victoria’s anti-corruption watchdog, dismissing Robert Redlich as “a bloke who used to do a job, who’s written a letter I haven’t seen”.

Labor on Thursday shut down the opposition’s attempts, backed by the Greens, to suspend scheduled business in Victorian parliament to debate the former IBAC commissioner’s explosive allegations, which include accusing the Andrews government of allowing “partisan politics” to intrude into the workings of the parliamentary committee that oversees the watchdog.

The claims were made in a letter published in Thursday’s Herald Sun newspaper, which Mr Redlich wrote shortly before his term ended in December. The letter was addressed to Speaker Maree Edwards and Nazih Elasmar, whose term as Legislative Council President ended at the November 24 election.

Asked to respond to Mr Redlich’s allegations that government MPs directed independent auditors Callida Consulting to “find dirt on IBAC and data that is not readily publicly available”, via parliament’s Labor-dominated Integrity and Oversight Committee, Mr Andrews said the membership of committees was determined by parliament, not him.

Robert Redlich. Picture: AAP

“I’m not having a debate with a bloke who used to do a job, who’s written a letter I haven’t seen,” the Premier said.

“I absolutely reject any suggestion by him or anybody else that the government does not behave appropriately. The government does behave appropriately. There are no findings to the contrary.”

Mr Andrews said he had “not seen” the letter, and was not aware of whether it had been brought to his office’s attention, amid questions from the Coalition and the Greens about why the presiding officers kept it secret.

“He didn’t send the letter to me. It was of such seriousness that it wasn’t sent to me, and now you’re asking me to have take action on something that wasn’t even sent to me,” the Premier said.

Ms Edwards took on notice a question time point of order from state Opposition Leader John Pesutto asking her to make the letter available to all members of the Legislative Assembly.

Asked to respond to Mr Redlich’s call in the letter for reform of the Integrity and Oversight Committee so it cannot be chaired and controlled by the party of government, Mr Andrews said: “The ex-head of that agency is not a member of parliament, and it’s the parliament that will determine these matters. Very simple.

John Pesutto. Picture: Luis Ascui

“He’s got a view. He’s not in the parliament. He didn’t stand for election. He’s not part of the government, or part of a majority or a member of the House. Other people are, and those decisions have already been made. You want to determine parliamentary committee membership. Well, then get yourself elected.”

When Mr Redlich was appointed IBAC commissioner in 2018, the Andrews government described the man who had 30 years’ experience as a barrister before serving as a Supreme Court judge for 15 years — including 11 years on the Court of Appeal — as “one of Victoria’s most eminent and well-respected jurists”.

Mr Redlich’s replacement is yet to be appointed, with his former deputy Stephen Farrow currently acting as interim commissioner.

Asked when an appointment would be made, Mr Andrews said the “process is underway”. Asked how long the search would last, Mr Andrews said, “As long as it takes”.

“I haven’t got a timeline. I expect that it’s in the next sort of three to six months, early in the first half of the year. … They’re very important appointments and you need to go through a proper process,” he said.

Mr Andrews has been questioned as part of at least four IBAC probes, including Operation Richmond, which examined dealings between the government and the United Firefighters Union, Operation Sandon, into allegations of corrupt land deals, Operation Watts over the misuse of ­political staffers, and Operation Daintree, which is looking at a contract awarded to the Health Workers’ Union ahead of the 2018 election.

Mr Redlich wrote in his letter that IBAC had been advised that the Integrity and Oversight Committee was “looking for evidence to support a narrative that ‘IBAC is not performing’”.

“What is most concerning is that it appears that the chair and majority of the IOC Audit Sub-Committee seemed intent on casting IBAC in a negative light for what we can only assume were political reasons relating to the work undertaken by IBAC,” Mr Redlich wrote

Asked to respond to the claims, Mr Andrews questioned Mr Redlich’s evidence.

“You’d need to back that up, wouldn’t you? What supporting information is there for that? Like we can all make claims, we can all say all sorts of things, but I think … common sense tells you that you’d have to have some sense that that was backed up,” he said.

Mr Redlich also accused the Integrity and Oversight Committee of failing to follow proper processes, when then chair Harriet Shing — who is now a minister — effectively gagged him, ordering parliamentary staff to “cut the feed” as he gave live-streamed evidence in response to opposition questions about two secret IBAC appearances by Mr Andrews.

“IBAC has been concerned for some time now that partisan politics has intruded into the workings of the Committee on issues of integrity,” he wrote.

“IBAC’s experience with the IOC, particularly in the last 12 months, evidences a lack of fairness, partisanship and leaking of information to the media.”

The IOC is made of four Labor MPs, with one MP from each of the Liberal, National and Green parties. It is chaired by Labor MP Gary Maas.

Mr Pesutto said the issues raised by Mr Redlich’s letter were “deeply concerning”.

“The former IBAC commissioner is not only making allegations of interference, he’s making very serious allegations, which, if true, may well be criminal,” Mr Pesutto said.

“The allegations relate to the possibility that government members and their staff tried to suborn a breach of the secrecy and confidentiality provisions that surround IBAC’s work. And why? Simply to it rough it up, damage its reputation.

“Victoria used to have a great reputation as a place where governments acted with integrity, with principles, with ethics, and what do we have here? It’s acting like a gang. It’s roughing up integrity agencies. It’s trying to interfere with the work of independent auditors who were there to report on the affairs of IBAC simply so it can protect the government. This is not good enough.”

Supporting the Opposition’s move for the matter to be debated in parliament, Greens MP Tim Read said it was an “urgent matter”.

“It simply doesn’t make sense, it can’t be justified, and you couldn’t explain this with a straight face … for a government dominated committee to be responsible for oversight of the government,” Dr Read said.

“It’s critical that we debate the question of the non-receipt of this letter.”