James Packer: Peter Costello called treasurer on my behalf

Peter Costello ‘made an important call’ to the then Victorian treasurer on behalf of James Packer in 2014, the businessman alleges.

James Packer, above, claims to have paid Peter Costello $300,000 for lobbying services. Picture: Aaron Francis

Peter Costello “made an important call” to then Victorian treasurer Michael O’Brien on behalf of James Packer in 2014, the businessman has alleged in correspondence with the ex-treasurer.

In an exchange in late June and early July, Mr Packer presents a picture of lobbying vastly at odds with the now Nine Entertainment chairman’s version of events – outlining a series of engagements ­between himself, Mr Costello and Mr O’Brien over several years.

However, while he was on the books until 2012, on Monday Mr Packer told The Australian that Mr Costello had not formally lobbied for him in 2014. “Anything Costello did for me or Crown in 2014 he did for free,” he said.

The Australian on Monday ­reported the souring relations ­between Mr Packer and the media conglomerate his family controlled until 2007. Mr Packer ­recently sold his stake in Crown Resorts for $3.2bn and has vowed to return to Australia to rehabilitate his reputation.

Mr Costello, who joined the board of the Future Fund in 2009 and the board of Nine in 2013, confirmed he had consulted for Mr Packer’s Consolidated Press Holdings vehicle but strongly ­denied lobbying Mr O’Brien, the gaming minister before becoming treasurer, for the billionaire. Mr Packer claims to have paid Mr Costello $300,000 for lobbying services.

James Packer. Picture: Aaron Francis

Peter Costello.

At the time, in 2011, Mr Costello was an owner of ECG Advisory, a lobbying firm he established with his former staffers, David Gazard and Jonathan Epstein. While ECG was a registered lobbyist in Victoria, neither Crown nor CPH was listed as one of its clients.

Mr Gazard, Mr Costello’s then business partner, said he was ­“totally unaware of any contractual relationship between ECG and CPH, Crown or Packer”.

“He’s right. And I have never said to the contrary,” said Mr Costello on Monday. “My contract with … CPH ended in 2012 and I have had no engagement since. I joined Nine in 2013 when the company was in the hands of lenders and distressed credit funds and I was asked to help with the restructure,” he added.

“Mr Packer had no interest in Nine at that time and I had no commercial relationship with him. There was nothing to declare.”

According to Mr Packer, Mr Costello was as late as 2014 still “helping” him with politically sensitive matters. “You also made an important call to Michael O’Brian (sic) in 2014 for me when he wanted more tax from Crown and threatened to up the tax rates on Crown, against the original Crown contract with the Victorian govt,” he wrote in June. “We ended up reaching a deal with the Vict liberal government that extended the Crown license for … 17 years.”

In August 2014, Crown had its operating licence extended to 2050 in a deal which saw the company pay $910m over the life of the agreement including an upfront payment of $250m.

At the time, Mr O’Brien was the state treasurer. He said: “It’s good for investment, it’s good for jobs, it’s good for tourism and it’s good for Victoria’s bottom line.”

When contacted for comment, Mr O’Brien said: “Peter Costello has never lobbied me on behalf of Crown or any other business.”

In his emails, Mr Costello more fully details his time consulting for CPH. The company retained him as an adviser from September 2011 to October 2012, he claims, although Mr Packer in 2014 “wanted to put me on a new retainer regarding a High Court challenge which I declined”. “Before all this on 13 February 2011 we had dinner at the Flower Drum with Michael O’Brien as I was a mutual friend,” Mr Costello writes. “None of this is a big deal. In my life as a lawyer, adviser, investment banker, I have represented 1000s of people from all different walks of life.”

In an earlier email, Mr Packer writes that he paid Mr Costello “handsomely” for his work.

On Monday, Nine publishing boss James Chessell told staff that “mental health sensitivities” made him reluctant to respond to Mr Packer’s claims about Mr Costello, adding that he had received “a blizzard of correspondence from Packer since he took exception to something we published”.

“I never heard a word from Peter Costello about Crown Unmasked before, during or after publication/broadcast,” he said.

Crown Unmasked was an investigative series published by Nine that found the casino company had inappropriately close relationships with known criminal figures, including some with connections to drug importation, and had pressured Australian officials to fast-track visas for high-rollers through consulates in China.

Inquiries later confirmed inappropriate conduct by Crown and imposed new rules on its operations, including delaying the opening of a new gaming floor in Sydney until this year.

In his emails, Mr Packer ­described those reports as “great journalism in the best sense”.

“Nick McKenzie should definitely win the Gold Walkley Award for best journalist, best story of the year,” he said.