Land council chief had junior hack emails

An email has all but confirmed suspicions that the South West Aboriginal Land and Sea Council had accessed the emails of a separate Aboriginal corporation.

South West Aboriginal Land and Sea Council chief executive Vanessa Kickett. Picture: Colin Murty

A confidential review of the nation’s biggest Native Title deal is being considered by authorities for the $1.3bn settlement ahead of decisions about annual funding for the seven Aboriginal corporations embroiled in disputes over its rollout.

The Weekend Australian can reveal that a seemingly benign emailed “ticket” from an IT contractor in August last year plunged the deal into turmoil because it all but confirmed suspicions that the South West Aboriginal Land and Sea Council had accessed the emails of a separate Aboriginal corporation. The corporations are effectively in annual competition for funding.

A subsequent internal investigation ordered by the south west council found that on August 11 last year, its chief executive Vanessa Kickett instructed a junior employee to access the email of Lisa Smith, who was then chief executive of the Wagyl Kaip Aboriginal Corporation.

The investigation found that between May and August 2023, Ms Kickett regularly requested reports from the junior employee about the emails of people who worked at separate regional Aboriginal corporations. The Weekend Australian has been told this was possible, but against policy, because the south west council was the IT service provider for those regional Aboriginal corporations.

Wagyl Kaip is one of six regional corporations established to realise the vast south west native title settlement. Liberal premier Colin Barnett proposed the deal - comprising a $600m future fund and 200,000sqkm of land - as a solution to an impasse in a long-running Federal Court battle between the state and more than 30,000 Noongar people of Perth and the southwest. It had bipartisan support because it delivered certainty to industry and developers while creating economic opportunities for Noongar people. Constitutional experts called it Australia’s first treaty.

In addition to the internal investigation, lawyer Anthony Beven’s independent review of all seven corporations was completed in August and is now with trustees and advisers who decide annual funding. Sources said the report - which is an annual requirement - helps to inform those funding decisions. However, when The Weekend Australian asked south west council on Friday if it believed the unpublished findings of Mr Beven’s report could have implications for its funding, a spokesperson replied: “No”.

When Ms Smith came to believe emails in her inbox had been opened by someone other than her or her assistant, she lodged a query with IT and received an update from a technician that stated in part: “I grabbed the ticket and halted work as advised by (south west council employee)”. Ms Smith did not comment to The Weekend Australian.

The investigation recommended the south west council board take disciplinary action against Ms Kickett. Her junior employee should not be disciplined, a summary of the report stated.

On Friday, a spokesperson for the south west council described the report as not an accurate reflection of the current situation.

“Most of the recommendations have been implemented, or are in the process of being implemented. Implemented changes include a restructure, the appointment of a Chief Operating Officer, and the separation of our service delivery functions.”

The spokesperson said the report also found some positives in the south west council’s services “and we are working to implement this across the corporation”. The south west council said any disciplinary action against Ms Kickett, who remains chief executive, is confidential.