ACT Integrity Commission to hold public hearings into Campbell Primary School expansion

The Integrity Commission has confirmed it will hold its first public hearings next week into the controversial procurement process for an expansion of Campbell Primary School.

Integrity commissioner Michael Adams KC said public hearings can only be held after "careful consideration of several factors".

He said after considering these factors it was in the public interest to hold public hearings.

"The seriousness of the allegations in Operation Kingfisher must be noted as the investigation relates to concerns that the system for dealing with procurement in the territory has been undermined by inappropriate conduct at senior levels," Mr Adams said.

"It is an important part of the role of the commission to investigate and expose these issues."

Mr Adams had previously flagged the potential for public hearings in estimates last month. He said the matter had exposed wider systemic issues.

"The Campbell School matter, the issues that have arisen are not just limited to those particular matters," he told estimates.

"There are wider systemic issues ... that will need attention."

The investigation, dubbed Operation Kingfisher, is investigating whether public officials in the ACT Education Directorate failed to exercise their official functions honestly when making recommendations regarding a tender for construction for the school's expansion.

MORE A.C.T. POLITICS NEWS:

The commission's investigation was prompted following a report from the Auditor-General into the procurement. It found tenderers were not dealt with fairly, impartially and consistently.

The government called for tenders in 2019 for a company to construct new buildings on the campus to accommodate 450 students, including a canteen, STEM and small group program facilities, landscaping and refurbishment of the school hall.

The audit report into the Campbell Primary School modernisation project showed construction company, Manteena was identified by two tender evaluation teams in three separate reports as the preferred tenderer.

The Canberra-based company consistently scored higher against the weighted evaluation criteria and quoted a lower price.

Despite this, Lendlease won the contract for the school in June 2020 after the acting executive group manager of the Education Directorate's business services division made a recommendation to Director-General Katy Haire without adequate reasoning.

The audit found the decision to award the tender was not based on the initial evaluation criteria the government went to market with with, but was based on a re-weighted and re-prioritised criteria.

The Campbell Primary School investigation is one of only two matters the Integrity Commission has confirmed it is investigating.

The other matter is $8.78 million of contracts awarded by the Canberra Institute of Technology to companies owned by "complexity and systems thinker" Patrick Hollingworth.

The commission has not revealed who will be fronting the hearings but it said calling a witness to provide evidence does not necessarily mean there will be an adverse finding against them. It could simply mean they have information relevant to the commission's investigation.

Hearings will be held on Thursday, August 10 and Friday, August 11.

Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can continue to access our trusted content: