A former Labor minister misused his position on a government board to lobby on behalf of a Chinese-backed consortium and solicited donations for the 2018 election campaign of his daughter.
A former Labor minister misused his position on a government board to lobby on behalf of a Chinese-backed consortium for a $31 billion “super-city” in Melbourne’s west, and, in lieu of payments for his work, solicited donations for the 2018 election campaign of his daughter, Northcote MP Kat Theophanous.
While the former minister was not paid, IBAC found he had prepared draft invoices and agreements. The commission said this was an indication he was seeking to obtain payment for his work. “IBAC did not uncover any corruption in terms of private financial benefit,” Theophanous said. “Nevertheless, IBAC continued to expend substantial resources over a two-year period in pursuit of a single individual in an attempt to prove that there was ‘unpaid lobbying’ that should have been disclosed and that political donations were made that were in fact ‘payments in kind’.
The project was abandoned that year after concerns were raised about its viability and Chinese investment. The consortiumIBAC’s investigation found Australian Education City did not formally engage Theophanous as a lobbyist because he did not receive a letter from the planning authority to confirm the arrangement would not pose a conflict of interest.
Theophanous repeatedly denied to IBAC investigators he was lobbying on behalf of the AEC. He said his discussions with the ministers occurred in his capacity as an “ordinary citizen who took an interest in issues concerning the western suburbs”.
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