Curse of ICAC claims Covid crusader Gladys Berejiklian
Amid her her bombshell resignation, Gladys Berejiklian slams ICAC’s timing, setting the stage for a difficult contest to identify her successor.
Gladys Berejiklian, the country’s most influential premier through the Covid-19 crisis, has been forced to resign and exit parliament after the state’s corruption watchdog confirmed it would investigate her for a “breach of public trust”.
The NSW premier’s bombshell resignation, days before the state emerges from pandemic lockdown and braces for a surge of infections and hospital admissions, came an hour after it was confirmed she would become a focus of public hearings connected to her ex-boyfriend, disgraced former Liberal MP Daryl Maguire.
In a leadership defined by rock-star approval ratings and spectacular successes during the first wave of the Covid-19 pandemic, Ms Berejiklian said had been left with no choice but to resign.
She criticised the ICAC’s decision and its timing in revealing its investigation.
Ms Berejiklian said resigning went against “every instinct in my being”, adding it was a decision she did not want to make.
“My resignation as premier could not happen at a worse time, but the timing is completely outside of my control as the ICAC has chosen to take this action during the most challenging weeks of the most challenging times in the history of NSW,” she said.
Her departure also sets the stage for a difficult leadership contest to identify her successor; as of Friday night this contest remained confined to Treasurer Dominic Perrottet and Planning Minister Rob Stokes, with Mr Perrottet notionally in front with more than half of the votes.
Jobs Minister Stuart Ayres and Attorney-General Mark Speakman were also canvassing for support, but their positions remained undefined. A replacement is likely to be chosen at a partyroom meeting scheduled for Tuesday.
Ms Berejiklian becomes the third NSW leader to be forced from office by ICAC, following Barry O’Farrell in 2014 and Nick Greiner in 1992.
Ms Berejiklian will appear before a public hearing of the ICAC inquiry, known as Operation Keppel, on October 18, and is expected to answer allegations relating to funding grants awarded to entities in Mr Maguire’s former electorate of Wagga Wagga, according to a statement released by the ICAC.
The inquiry would also examine whether Ms Berejiklian engaged dishonestly by not reporting potential matters of corruption, and will canvas whether she allowed or encouraged “corrupt conduct by Mr Maguire” during their relationship.
Ms Berejiklian said she learned of the agency’s decision on Thursday afternoon, just hours before she was due to appear before 1000 members of the Liberal Party in an online town hall gathering.
She cancelled the meeting without citing a reason, a decision that prompted speculation that developments may be afoot, possibly involving ICAC.
“The issues which it is investigating are historic matters that have already been the subject of numerous attacks on me by political opponents during the last 12 months,” she said. “Many of the matters were the subject of questions I was asked by the opposition while appearing before an estimates committee hearing earlier this year. I want to be very clear, in all the decisions I have ever made as a minister or as premier for NSW, my first consideration has always been the wellbeing and welfare of the people of this state.”
Ms Berejiklian’s exposure to ICAC emerged in October last year when she was called to give evidence in relation to Mr Maguire, at the time the only target of Operation Keppel’s inquiries.
Her evidence was predicted to be uneventful. Within minutes it emerged that she and Mr Maguire had been involved a years-long relationship that raised concerning questions about potential conflicts of interest.
In the aftermath of those hearings, Ms Berejiklian resisted calls to stand down and retained the ongoing support of her party. This was in large part due to her immense popularity with the electorate following the eradication of Covid-19 from NSW.
The Australian in February reported that Ms Berejiklian was personally briefed in July 2018 that two ministerial advisers were making disclosures to corruption investigators about Mr Maguire’s alleged misconduct – two years before she was forced to disclose their relationship.
Mr Maguire had resigned from parliament earlier that month after a separate ICAC inquiry into corruption allegations at Canterbury City Council heard recordings of the then Liberal MP discussing potential “dividends” with property developers.
Since that time, Mr Maguire has been implicated in allegations relating to an illegal visas scheme and for trying to broker favourable deals for developers.
Despite Mr Maguire’s resignation, and being told that advisers were coming forward with information that may be relevant to the investigation, Ms Berejiklian did not assist the ICAC until she was summoned in 2020.
Ms Berejiklian’s resignation from politics ends her 19 years as the MP for Willoughby, and stints as transport minister and treasurer in successive Liberal governments over the past 10 years.
The news prompted messages of gratitude and support from colleagues in the state and federal spheres of politics.
NSW Liberal president Philip Ruddock said: “The party owes a great debt of gratitude for her incredibly hard work, leading the state party and taking our team to a third-term victory in 2019.”
Former prime minister Tony Abbott said the people of NSW should be “grateful for her service and for her efforts to let us live free, despite the virus”, while former prime minister Malcolm Turnbull described her as “one of our best premiers”.
January would have marked Ms Berejiklian’s fifth year in office and made her one of the longest serving leaders in NSW history, behind Bob Carr and Robert Askin. She was elevated to the role in 2017 following the resignation of her predecessor, Mike Baird, who stepped down citing a need to spend more time with family.
Ms Berejiklian’s position with voters remained lukewarm in 2019 after mounting a comeback to clinch an election victory from NSW Labor, but her approval ratings skyrocketed through the Covid-19 pandemic.
Voters applauded her decision-making to lockdown the state and lauded her leadership after public health officials implemented a testing and tracing regime that successfully eliminated the virus.
This popularity appeared to wane in recent months as a result of the Delta variant, which seeped into the community due to gaps in public health measures at the airport and resulted in millions of people being locked down.
The Australian reported last month that private hearings had recommenced into Operation Keppel and that two of Ms Berejiklian’s most senior ministers, Deputy Premier John Barilaro and Mr Ayres, had been summoned to give evidence.
On Friday, Mr Barilaro praised Ms Berejiklian for leading NSW “through some if its darkest days” as it battled the pandemic.
“Everyone has the right to defend their name and I wish Gladys all the best for her future.,” he said.
NSW Labor leader Chris Minns said that “for all our disagreements, I never doubted Gladys’ dedication to NSW”.
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