ACT Integrity Commission hearings into Campbell Primary School expansion begin

The preferred tender was more than $800,000 cheaper, but another construction company was chosen to complete the Campbell Primary school expansion project, with the Integrity Commission exploring the involvement of Yvette Berry's office in the decision-making process.

What was said in a conversation between Ms Berry's former chief of staff and an unnamed public servant who was tasked with choosing a builder for the school expansion has been confirmed as a key issue for the investigation.

The ACT Integrity Commission is also examining whether alleged union interference played a role in the awarding of a contract to construct an expansion of Campbell Primary School.

The commission, holding a public hearing for the first time on Thursday, heard allegations that Ms Berry's former chief of staff, Josh Ceramidas, was alleged to have said construction company, Manteena, was not to receive a contract to build the expansion.

Ms Berry and CFMEU officials - including the current national secretary and a past ACT secretary - will be called to give evidence to the commission in public hearings examining the controversial procurement.

The views from Ms Berry's office around Manteena to not receive the contract followed a meeting between the education directorate official, who was given the pseudonym John Green, and the CFMEU.

Mr Green told the hearing he went to a meeting with former CFMEU ACT secretary Jason O'Mara on or around February 19 2020 and he alleged the union secretary said Manteena should not receive the contract and that Lendlease was a better contractor.

"To the best of my recollections it was 'Manteena shouldn't get it they don't do the right things by their workers," Mr Green said.

In the weeks after, Mr Green told the hearing he was told by an acting director of the Education Directorate that she was told by the Ms Berry's office that Manteena was not to receive the contract.

"[The acting director said] 'I've been summoned down to the Minister's office to talk about Campbell, Josh says Manteena is not to get it'," Mr Green said.

The reason given for this was the company had issues with the secure local jobs code and its industrial relations contracts.

The commission 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.

Construction companies Manteena and Lendlease had both put forward offers for the Campbell school's expansion. Manteena was found to be the preferred tenderer by an evaluation team and offered a lower price but the evaluation criteria was re-weighted and Lendlease was given the contract.

A public hearing into the investigation has heard there were rumours about Manteena receiving a lot of work and CFMEU had a negative view of this.

The commission heard there was a "line of communication" between CFMEU and Ms Berry's former chief of staff.

The commission's counsel assisting, Callan O'Neill, said this was not unusual but it warranted further investigation.

"I expect that the evidence before the commission will be the ACT branch of the [CFMEU] did hold a negative view of Manteena," Mr O'Neill said.

"This was conveyed to the Minister and or her chief of staff at various times whilst the procurement process was underway."

MORE A.C.T. POLITICS NEWS:

The commission is also investigating whether an Education Directorate official allegedly influenced the process for a tender.

The official began giving evidence to the commission in public on Thursday, but has had their name suppressed by the commission for privacy reasons.

Mr O'Neill said evidence before the commission suggested Mr Green directed the tender evaluation team to change its recommendation around the procurement for the school expansion in his new role in the education directorate.

Mr Green previously held a role as the government's secure local jobs registrar but the union was unhappy with his performance in that role. He told the hearing he made the decision to leave this role in early 2020 and move to the education directorate due to these issues in the secure local jobs.

The investigation is examining whether public officials in the directorate failed to exercise their official functions honestly and/or impartially when making recommendations and decisions about the Campbell Primary School modernisation project from 2019 to 2020.

In December 2021, the ACT Auditor-General found a delegate for the Education Directorate effectively re-weighted and re-prioritised the evaluation criteria when making a recommendation on the preferred tenderer for the building contract.

CFMEU national secretary Zach Smith and Mr O'Mara will also be called to give evidence to the commission.

The director-general of the Education Directorate Katy Haire will also be called to give evidence.

At present, Mr Ceramidas has not been called to give evidence.

"The key witnesses are those who performed decision making processes or had potential to influence them," Mr O'Neill said.

"They are, in no particular order, Mr Green, Ms Haire, Ms Berry and Mr Ceramidas."

Integrity Commissioner Michael Adams KC said a person being called as a witness did not mean they would have an adverse finding made about them.

Mr O'Neill said there was evidence that could support a conclusion that officials acted to bring about a desired outcome.

"The commission has obtained evidence that could reasonably support a conclusion that particular individuals actively participated in the process to bring about an outcome despite that which legitimate procedures were proposed and have sought to conceal that conduct," Mr O'Neill said.

"These matters are serious, so to is the potential for findings in the interference in and abuse of government procurement processes that did not represent the best value for money for the community.

"The central issue in this investigation considers whether the system for dealing with a significant procurements in the territory and which applied to the project have been undermined by inappropriate conduct and either a political or bureaucratic level or both."

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: