Former Investment NSW deputy secretary Jenny West also delivered a blistering attack on agency boss Amy Brown over claims she had performed poorly in her deputy secretary’s role.
A senior public servant was who verbally offered a prestigious US trade post that was later handed to former NSW deputy premier John Barilaro was told by her agency head that the role would be a “Former Investment NSW deputy secretary Jenny West appeared as the second witness before a NSW parliamentary inquiry probing a government decision to hand a coveted trade role to Mr Barilaro.
“In the space of four weeks, I went from having been appointed to the role of the senior trade and investment commissioner for the Americans to potentially not having a job.”in early July, conceding scrutiny and media interest in the role had made it “untenable” for him to take the position. “I asked Mr Coutts-Trotter for a 15-minute meeting to explain my situation. I did not receive a response from him,” she told the committee. “The next I heard from him was by way of a formal letter terminating my employment one month later.”Ms West detailed how she had started looking into rental accommodation and relocation measures after Ms Brown offered her the role of senior trade and investment commissioner to the Americas on August 12, 2021.
The former public servant also detailed how Ms Brown had called her an “extraordinary performer” and had expressed disappointment that the trade post was going to someone else, before going on to lambast Ms West in a private hearing last week.Ms West appeared more than a week after Ms Brown fronted the NSW upper house inquiry and detailed how she had offered Ms West the role, but eventually became concerned she wasn’t suitable for the position.
“This suggestion is contrary to my selection by an independent committee following a competitive process. And contrary to what Miss Brown told me at the time of my appointment during my employment in the NSW government, I have never received any negative feedback about my performance.“Miss Brown’s suggestion that there were discrepancies in my curriculum vitae is false. My CV was given to an independent panel well ahead of the selection process.
Premier Dominic Perrottet is yet to make a public comment in relation to today’s hearing and revelations.
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