More than a year and a half after Gladys Berejiklian resigned while awaiting the findings of the NSW corruption watchdog’s investigation into her conduct, the report will shortly be delivered.
Berejiklian’s transactions were investigated after the Independent Commission Against Corruption launched an investigation into the disgraced former Wagga Wagga Liberal member of parliament Daryl Maguire.
During their five-year covert relationship, the watchdog investigated whether Maguire used his position as an MP for financial advantage and whether Berejiklian breached the public’s trust.
The ICAC indicated that the NSW legislature will get the final report on June 29.
The Operation Keppel report would be delivered to the presiding officers of the parliament at 9 a.m., and it would be available for public inspection if the officers decided to release it.
The commission disclosed in January that the report would not be published prior to the March election because it involved intricate legal issues and thousands of pages of exhibits, transcripts, and submissions.
A spokeswoman stated at the time, “The commission remains conscious of its obligation to provide the report as soon as possible after it has concluded its involvement in the matter, and continues to anticipate that the report will be ready to provide during this quarter.”
The report is due nearly 18 months after Berejiklian’s resignation as premier in October 2021, and more than two and a half years after she first testified about her covert affair with Maguire.
The investigation centers on whether Berejiklian’s concealment of her relationship with Maguire violated public trust, whether she improperly handled initiatives pursued by Maguire, and whether she engaged in behavior “likely to permit or encourage corruption” by him.
Berejiklian has refuted any wrongdoing and cited potential protracted delays in the ICAC’s report delivery as the cause for her resignation.
