IBAC hearings LIVE updates Do you want to win the election or not Somyurek says Andrews dismissed concern about gold standard red shirts rort

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The public hearings running this week are part of an inquiry called Operation Watts into allegations of corrupt conduct involving Victorian public officers, including members of parliament.

The investigation is run jointly by the Victorian Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission and the Victorian Ombudsman and its remit includes allegations of branch stacking in the Victorian Labor Party, as first revealed in an investigation by The Age and 60 Minutes last year.

Branch stacking is an organised method of accumulating internal power in a party by recruiting, and usually paying the fees for, new members.

But it’s much more pointed than just that. The real question is whether public officers, including Victorian members of parliament, are engaging in corrupt conduct by directing ministerial or electorate office staff to perform party‐political work when they should instead be doing ministerial or electorate work.

It will also look at whether public money given by the Victorian government as grants to community associations, has been redirected and misused to fund party‐political activities, or for any other improper purposes. It will ask if ministers or others involved in granting the funds have “dishonestly performed their functions” or “knowingly or recklessly breached public trust”.

The inquiry will look into whether any public officer, their families or their associates, received a personal benefit from these things, and looks at what systems and controls are in place to monitor these money flows.

The hearing is expected to go for at least four weeks. It’s overseen by IBAC Commissioner Robert Redlich, QC, and run by counsel assisting Chris Carr, SC.

When asked if his electorate officers were involved in harvesting and casting ballot forms for the 2018 Labor Party national executive delegate election, Mr Somyurek said: “Correct for a short period of time and in between telephone calls and looking after constituents.”

Chris Carr, SC, the counsel assisting the inquiry, said there was no “sliding scale under which it’s acceptable to deploy your electorate office staff to do this sort of work is there”.

“It’s not ideal to have an extended period of time doing stuff like this,” Mr Somyurek said.

“Let’s be clear there is a significant distinction [between filling out ballot forms and red shirts rort]. You’ve got to admit there is a scale on these things. This is for a very short period of time without the conveyor belt being off.”

Mr Somyurek said it was acceptable for staff to fill out ballot forms during their “down time” instead of surfing the internet or gossiping with friends.

Mr Carr has asked why Mr Somyurek was employing extra staff if there wasn’t enough work in his electorate office.

“That’s precisely your mindset that you had an entitlement as an MP to put 2.5 [full time equivalent staff] on and it didn’t matter whether there was genuine electorate office work to be done. You would take advantage of that entitlement, isn’t that right?” Mr Carr said.

Mr Somyurek responded: “That’s pretty accurate, yeah.”

The hearings are back from a lunch break and counsel assisting the inquiry Chris Carr, SC, is questioning Adem Somyurek about staff in the former cabinet minister’s electorate office filling out ballot papers for the 2018 Labor Party national conference.

The commission hearings have taken a break for an hour and will recommence at 2.30pm.

Chris Carr, SC, warned Adem Somyurek to focus on the questions and not in making speeches.

Mr Somyurek is being asked about a “significant effort” within his Moderate Labor group to harvest and cast ballots for the 2018 National Executive election, in which the former minister was seeking to be elected to the Labor Party’s powerful administrative committee.

Mr Somyurek admitted his electorate office staff were involved in that process, but that it “wasn’t significant work”.

Adem Somyurek appears before IBAC via videolink.

In his answers, he constantly referred to former Senator Stephen Conroy and him losing his seat on national executive, to which Mr Carr said “No, no, no” and warned him to focus on responding to the questions.

Commissioner Robert Redlich and Mr Carr referred to Mr Somyurek’s earlier comments that the Ombudsman’s decision not to use harsher language or refer matters for police charges gave the impression it was “carte balance, you could do whatever you wanted”.

Mr Redlich asked Mr Somyurek whether he believed it was “carte blanche” to use electorate staffers, but the upper house MP said he didn’t use the term in that context.

The commission is going to come back to the context in which Mr Somyurek used “carte blanche”, and whether he believed that to be the case in his office.

“I’m not sure where that leaves us with carte blanche, Mr Somyurek,” Mr Redlich said before adjourning the hearing for a one-hour lunch break.

The online video stream, which is about 30 minutes behind the live questioning, will recommence at 2.30pm.

Adem Somyurek has told the IBAC inquiry that Premier Daniel Andrews dismissed his concerns about the red shirts affair, which he described as the “gold standard rort”.

In response to raising concerns, Mr Somyurek claimed Mr Andrews told him: “Do you want to win an election or not?”

Victorian parliamentarians, including the Labor and Liberal parties, did not have the will to stamp out taxpayer-funded staff from doing factional activities during working hours, the former minister told the public hearing.

Premier Daniel Andrews.Credit:Joe Armao

Mr Somyurek said he was involved in discussions in the government caucus following the Victorian Ombudsman’s report into red shirts, and they “deliberately” did not go beyond banning staffers from campaigning, in similar to vain to that scandal.

He said Ombudsman Deborah Glass’ decision to not use harsher language or recommend charges, created an impression that staff were allowed to do factional work during their taxpayer-funded working hours.

“Red shirts was the gold standard [for rorting taxpayer resources],” Mr Somyurek said.

“When the Ombudsman came back and basically admitted defeat and didn’t call IBAC or charges, we were all settled, that means that you do whatever you want, you can get your electorate officers, you can determine the duties and responsibilities of your officers without limitations.

“I would contend because the ombudsman didn’t use harsher language and didn’t refer matters to charges, it created the impressions that it was carte blanche, you could do whatever you wanted.”

Following the report, the legislation was changed to prohibit party political activity around campaign, but Mr Somyurek said the changes were too narrow.

“Is it fair to say notwithstanding the Ombudsman’s report, parliament, including all of the parties here that voted on this motion did not have the will to address the factional activity of elected officers?” Commissioner Robert Redlich said.

“Spot on,” Mr Somyurek replied.

Mr Redlich: “What a terrible indictment … [given] Parliament is the first place to ensure that not only members, but staff, confine their activities to complying with and discharging their public duties.”

There was a unity ticket in parliament to not tackle the Ombudsman’s report properly because every MP from every party were involved in directing their taxpayer-funded staff to do factional activities, Mr Somyurek said.

He said because the Ombudsman had not come out stronger in relation to the red shirts scandal, MPs believed the Parliamentary Administration Act trumped the Members Guide, which prohibited electorate staff from being involved in party political activity.

Section 30 (4) of the Act states: Despite subsection (2), the duties and responsibilities of a person employed as an electorate officer are to be determined by the member who nominated that person.

But Mr Redlich said the amendments to the Act included a variety of provisions that defined what sort of activities public resources could be used for by members of parliament.

“I suggest to you those amendments...made very clear that you could not use public resources for factional activity,” Mr Redlich said.

The red shirts affair was the name given to what became an Ombudsman investigation that found Labor broke parliamentary rules by using $388,000 in public funds to pay campaign staff working on the 2014 election campaign.

Adem Somyurek claimed he spoke directly to Premier Daniel Andrews about the impropriety of using electorate staffers to campaign in 2014 - as part of the ‘red shirts’ rort - the IBAC inquiry heard.

The red shirts affair was the name given to what became an Ombudsman investigation that found Labor broke parliamentary rules by using $388,000 in public funds to pay campaign staff working on the 2014 election campaign.

The scheme involved a “60:40” split in which some casual electorate officers were paid partly by the Labor Party for their field campaign work with the remainder of their pay coming from the taxpayer.

Mr Somyurek told the Ombudsman investigation he was coerced by former Treasurer John Lenders - who the Ombudsman found was the architect of the scheme - to be involved in the process, and said he had concerns about the scale of “improper” use of electorate staffers in the 2014 election campaign.

“And your position is that you, in fact, spoke directly to the Premier about being involved in this issue in the use of electorate officers for the red shirts process,” Counsel assisting the inquiry Chris Carr, SC, put to Mr Somyurek.

Mr Carr asked Mr Somyurek whether he accepted that when MPs are given responsibilities for public resources “they are solely to be deployed in the aid of your public duties”.

Mr Somyurek said: “Uhm, yes, but if you’re talking about party political activities we would sort of believe that was part of your public duties.”

Former Labor treasurer John Lenders appearing before the Victorian Parliament’s privileges committee about the red shirts scheme in 2018.Credit:Daniel Pockett

“If there was an MP in New South Wales who used a staff member to look after their children that’s not appropriate.“

Mr Somyurek said part of an MP’s public duties was party-political work.

But that “there was less scope” to direct ministerial staffers for factional work compared with electorate staffers.

“My ministerial staffers were hired to be non-political but I didn’t get factional staff as my ministerial advisers,” Mr Somyurek said.

Adem Somyurek said he did not have an issue with his staff undertaking factional activity during work hours, but that it needed to have limits.

This line of questioning is of importance because those employed to work in electorate offices are paid by the taxpayer to manage the office for constituents, and are not supposed to be involved in factional work on the clock.

Log on with a smile: A grinning Adem Somyurek when hearings began this morning.

Counsel assisting Chris Carr, SC, said: “Is it true that as a broad proposition, you employed recruiters in your office?”

Mr Somyurek said while there were people in his office who could “potentially recruit”, they weren’t recruiting.

“I don’t have a problem with my staff being factional, I would try to limit that from what they do from my office. Would I expect there would be doing some things that are factional, yes but that’s going to have limits,” Mr Somyurek said.

“In terms of custom and practice, you saw the culture I came through Byrne’s office...when I became an MP I sort of asked questions to Parliamentary Services in terms of parameters in which I employed people.”

He said he didn’t tell them not to do factional work, but admitted he may have asked them to do factional work.

“I accept them even if I didn’t direct them, I can’t recall, but I’m sure you have text messages … but I do accept where there’s down time, and there was a lot of down time, they would be looking at databases,” Mr Somyurek said.

“The young ones who like to gossip about doing factional work, but they don’t.”

He said most of the admin meetings were after hours so there wasn’t much factional activity to do during work hours.

He said people just “fantasise” about factional politics and what parliamentary seat they’re going to get, Mr Somyurek said.

The hearings have taken a short break.

Adem Somyurek said fellow MP Marlene Kairouz would “absolutely” need to keep a close eye on her branches to protect her status as an MP for her safe Labor seat.

He said he had a fairly close relationship with Ms Kairouz, and when asked if he was aware her office was involved in the process of renewing memberships, he said he expected her electorate officer Kirsten Psaila to be “doing the numbers” but they never discussed it openly.

Adem Somyurek, left and centre, with ministerial adviser Nick McLennan [right]. Credit:Nine

Mr Somyurek disagreed with Commissioner Robert Redlich’s statement that Mr Somyurek and Ms Kairouz had “pooled” staff for factional activities.

He said he did pool staff for factional work with Mr Byrne.

He said in 2018, federal MP Anthony Byrne had asked Mr Somyurek to find a job for his staffer Nick McLennan.

He said he would look for a job for him after that election.

After the election, Mr McLennan started working for Ms Kairouz, who admitted in private hearings Mr McLennan had been involved in factional activity for a “significant part of his working time”, counsel assisting the commission Chris Carr, SC, said.

Former cabinet minister, current MP and Somyurek ally Marlene Kairouz.Credit:Eddie Jim

This is the first piece of evidence that has emerged so far today from Ms Kairouz’s private examination, which occurred last week.

Ms Kairouz was excused from giving evidence in public last week due to concerns for her welfare.

Mr Somyurek had claimed earlier in questioning that Mr McLennan was predominantly doing ministerial work in Ms Kairouz’s office.

“Ministerial offices and the politics job is not 9 to 5, it’s 24/7, so I think it’s acceptable for people to do certain things provided he make up for the time...he was no longer on admin, he was no longer on MAC [membership administrative committee] so you can see from that his factional duties where he had sort of left factional politics,” Mr Somyurek said.

“His role wasn’t a factional in Ms Kairouz’s office and I actually put him in the freezer … because he just sort of abruptly ended his activities.”

Adem Somyurek said he was asked by federal MP Anthony Byrne to contribute to funds to pay for other people’s membership.

He accused Mr Byrne of asking for $7000 from a Vietnamese man for the scheme.

“Where I am, Byrne’s the boss,” Mr Somyurek told the inquiry.

“After my factional star rose, Byrne was still the charge of the south-east, he was the boss,” Mr Somyurek said.

Federal Labor MP Anthony Byrne resigned as deputy chairman of the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security after his evidence to IBAC.Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

Commissioner Robert Redlich warned Mr Somyurek not to “offer gratuitous comments” about other people.

Mr Somyurek said he could not recall when he started paying for other people’s memberships, but probably after he was elected in 2002, and continued doing so since.

He estimated he had contributed about $2000 a year, but said he was merely guessing as he couldn’t remember.

“I knew nothing about what happened to the money. I didn’t know anything about the ‘kitty’,” Mr Somyurek said.

He said he didn’t know what happened to the money after he gave it a staffer.

Mr Byrne earlier told IBAC there would be a “kitty” in his office where people would contribute funds to pay for other people’s memberships.

“There was a running joke between me and Luke we just never knew how much money they made [at the south-east Labor fundraisers,” Mr Somyurek said.

Former MP Tayfun Eren has been accused of branch stacking when he was an ALP staffer in then-Opposition leader John Brumby’s office, Adem Somyurek has told IBAC.

Former Senator Stephen Conroy was also “building an empire” while working as a staffer, Somyurek claimed.

Adem Somyurek appears before IBAC via videolink.

When asked if he had been branch stacking in his office, Mr Somyurek said: “We had a peace deal in the south-east, so I haven’t had to do that. If your question is: ‘Would you have done it if there wasn’t a peace deal?’ Then yes, because that’s what I saw as the custom and practice.”

The former minister said there was no branch stacking for about 17 years in the south-east.

He said the “major hotspots” after the 90s were around Geelong.

“A lot of activities, which is Richard Marles and John Eren, the brother of Tayfun Eren, the notorious branch stacker,” Mr Somyurek said.

“So the scheme was Marles, Eren and Conroy will do a takeover in Geelong … and if you read contemporaneous reports you can see the level of angst that was happening at the time.

And then John Eren got himself a seat, Richard Marles got himself a seat, and Lisa Neville [the former partner of Mr Marles] got herself a seat.”

Mr Somyurek said another flashpoint was the western suburbs. He said Jasvinder Sidhu - whose house was raided by Moderate Labor members in early 2020 - was the “new Tayfun Eren”.

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