Update — July 12, 2022: The NSW Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) watchdog is considering an investigation into John Barilaro‘s plum US trade job after claims the woman who was originally offered the job was told it was “a present for someone”.
Per The Sydney Morning Herald, the parliamentary inquiry into how Barilaro waltzed into a $500k-a-year job after resigning as the NSW Deputy Premier has uncovered more spicy details about the whole ordeal.
Former Investment NSW deputy secretary Jenny West — who was verbally offered the role in August 2021 — claimed Investment NSW chief executive Amy Brown told her the job was “a present for someone” when the job offer was revoked two months later.
Apparently, West was also told her original role at Investment NSW wouldn’t exist after a proposed restructure and was made redundant at the end of November.
The SMH reported that ICAC is thinking about launching an investigation into how Barilaro wound up getting the trade commissioner role in April after a new selection process.
He then gave up the job on June 30 and said it would be “untenable” for him to keep the controversial role.
Original — June 29, 2022: An inquiry into former Deputy Premier John Barilaro’s appointment to a $500,000 a year trade and investment commissioner role in New York has heard some spicy info in its first day.
The inquiry heard from Amy Brown, who’s head of Investment NSW and was in charge of the recruitment process for the role.
Basically, Brown confirmed that a woman called Jenny West was “verbally offered” the job in August 2021. Brown said she had originally congratulated West.
But then instructions from the NSW Government meant West actually didn’t get the job. Awkies office kitchen run-ins indeed!
“We conducted a recruitment process including panel interviews, there was a first-ranked candidate,” Brown said after a question from Greens MLC Cate Faehrmann, per the ABC.
“She was verbally offered the role and then I was given a direction by government to cease the recruitment due to a change in government policy to convert the roles into statutory officers appointed by a minister.”
At the time, John Barilaro was Minister for Industry and Trade.
According to Brown, the potential policy change “was a decision of government, it would have come through the responsible minister being the Minister for Industry and Trade”.
This kicked off in late September.
Per the Sydney Morning Herald, Brown said the government told Investment NSW to begin prepping legislation to change the recruitment process but ultimately it didn’t happen when Barilaro resigned from the Deputy Premiership in early October. Stuart Ayres was given the Industry and Trade portfolio.
While the legislation ultimately wasn’t changed, West was not re-offered the role. Labor’s Daniel Mookhey asked why.
Amy Brown said West was “extremely upset… understandably” when she was told her appointment to the role had stalled on 1 October. Ultimately the relo declined.
“To me the fact we couldn’t appoint anyone for some period of time and the fact she was very unhappy with the arrangements and government, the whole situation felt quite irreconcilable,” Brown said.
“The relationship declined quite quickly once she was informed that she may not be going to New York so by the end of the first process I’d formed the view there was no suitable candidate.”
Barilaro was ultimately chosen for the role out of 12 potential candidates according to The Guardian.
The inquiry’ll continue next week if you’re an absolute fiend for political tea spilling.
