Laptops affair was not a raid, says Queensland watchdog

Queensland’s corruption watchdog finds the removal of laptops from the state’s Integrity Commissioner’s office – containing sensitive information about lobbying – was not a ‘raid’.

Integrity Commissioner Nikola Stepanov resigned in January, midway through her second three-year term. Picture: Liam Kidston

PL

Queensland’s corruption watchdog has found the removal of laptops from the state’s Integrity Commissioner’s office – containing sensitive information about lobbying – was “entirely ordinary” and was not a “raid” by the Premier’s department or Public Service Commission.

The Crime and Corruption Commission began investigating after then-Integrity Commissioner Nikola Stepanov alleged confidential information was being leaked from her office and that the Public Service Commission took the computers and ­deleted information without her knowledge and consent.

Dr Stepanov announced in January that she would resign from the role – which regulates the state’s booming lobbying industry and provides advice about conflicts of interest – over her concerns there was interference in her attempts to probe unlawful lobbying. But the CCC’s long-awaited ­report tabled in parliament on Monday found “the commentary which has suggested that laptops were ‘seized’ and ‘wiped’ as a result of a ‘raid’ on the Integrity Commissioner’s office is, in the CCC’s view, a mischaracterization of what occurred”.

Annastacia Palaszczuk speaks to media during a press conference in regards to the recent Coaldrake Review. Picture: AAP

The watchdog has also urged the government to adopt recent recommendations to overhaul the Integrity Commissioner’s role to give it more teeth to regulate lobbying and more independence from the Public Service Commission.

Deputy Opposition Leader ­Jarrod Bleijie said it was “dangerous for democracy” that poor governance arrangements meant the laptops could be taken from the Integrity Commissioner’s ­office without her knowing.

“The fact these devices contained Integrity Commissioner records, including files on lobbyists, highlights how dangerous and inappropriate this is,” he said.

Part of the confusion and suspicion sparked by the laptop affair was due to the Integrity Commissioner’s staff being employed by the Public Service Commission, whose chief executive, Robert Setter, has clashed with Dr Stepanov. The Department of Premier and Cabinet is responsible for IT support for the Integrity Commissioner’s office.

One of the laptops belonged to an executive officer in Dr Stepanov’s office who was responsible for updating the lobbyist register, managing declarations of ­interest forms, and various email accounts.

The Integrity Commissioner’s office was under-resourced, and the executive officer was swamped with work, and began sending some of the emails to herself and her work email addresses – including one at the Public Service Commission – to try to triage the workload.

Bruce Barbour, Crime and Corruption Commission chair. Picture: Liam Kidston

Dr Stepanov began suspecting a leak from her office in October 2020 when forms went missing, not being properly processed or saved. She raised the issue with her executive officer, who left Dr Stepanov’s office on November 6, 2020, leaving her laptop and later making bullying allegations against Dr Stepanov and another director in the Integrity Commissioner’s office.

The director was temporarily shifted out of the Integrity Commissioner’s office, and her laptop was also left behind.

Public Service Commissioner Robert Setter. Picture: Liam Kidston

Eventually, in March last year when a new staff member was about to be moved to the Integrity Commissioner’s office, a Premier’s department IT worker took both spare laptops at the behest of the Public Service Commissioner. The director’s laptop was taken to further investigate the bullying allegations, and the executive director’s computer was taken to prepare for the new hire. Nothing was wiped from the director’s laptop, and information on the executive officer’s laptop was restored.

Attorney-General Shannon Fentiman accused Opposition Leader David Crisafulli of misleading Queenslanders with his commentary of the removal of the laptops, after repeatedly labelling it a “raid”.