Sudden ‘period of leave’ for head of Department of Parliamentary Services
Parliamentary boss failed to record ‘close relationship’
NACC officers raided the office of DPS secretary Rob Stefanic
Anti-corruption officers raided the offices of DPS secretary Rob Stefanic last month, days before he announced a leave of absence
YONI BASHAN and NICK EVANS
November 5, 2024
Dramatic developments in the infamous Canberra romance between departmental secretary Rob Stefanic and his former deputy, Cate Saunders(brought to light here, in this column, a few months ago).
On Monday we revealed that National Anti-Corruption Commission agents and Australian Federal Police raided Stefanic’s office at the Department of Parliamentary Services last month, seizing documents, a computer and a phone.
Stefanic announced a period of leave on October 9, almost a full week after the plastics had rifled through his belongings. Jaala Hinchcliffe, acting in Stefanic’s role, told a Senate estimates hearing that Stefanic remained on full pay but that she wasn’t sure when he would be back at work.
No suggestion from us that the secretary’s done anything wrong, only that the NACC has taken an interest in examining his affairs.
Hinchcliffe did, however, release one mewling cat from the bag, telling the room that barrister Fiona Roughley SC was in the midst of conducting an “independent fact-finding investigation” into the department and any role it played in an “incentive-to-retire payment” awarded to Saunders last year.
Ring any bells?
We revealed in May that Stefanic and Saunders had been involved in a romantic relationship but also that Saunders had exited the public service with a generous retirement payment in the order of $315,000.
Queried about their status, Stefanic told the same Senate committee that he and Saunders were friends, rather than romantically linked, but refused to spell out whether they were ever an item before or after her employment at DPS.
Hinchcliffe took it further on Monday, saying that Stefanic and Saunders were in a “close, personal relationship” – words made ultra famous by barrister Scott Robertson SC during that corruption inquiry into Gladys Berejiklian (and thankfully the senators dispensed of any long-winded jousts over whether the relationship between Stefanic and Saunders was of “sufficient substance”.)
Liberal Jane Hume was much displeased with what she claimed were “inconsistent stories” surrounding this matter and a “patchy record” of how Saunders obtained a secondment, last year, to work for Services NSW, from where her retirement payment was awarded. YB
Awkward moments
Fun times in Melbourne the day before the Melbourne Cup.
Tabcorp boss Gillon McLachlan, almost as well known for his other new role as head of the fun police at Flemington racecourse (he’s ended the tradition of politicians – and, yes, journalists – getting invited to the Tabcorp marquee in the Birdcage), was spotted at another interesting function on Monday.
It was the annual gathering of the Australian Hotels Association at the Botanical Hotel in South Yarra, a Cup eve tradition if there ever was one.
Earlier in the day, pub and pokies giant Endeavour Group had announced the appointment of a new managing director of ALH Hotels, Paul Carew – who has until now been Tabcorp’s chief operating officer.
Of course, Carew was at the AHA lunch, as was Endeavour chairman Ari Mervis.
McLachlan had promised sweeping changes to his executive ranks and, well, Carew is the first change.
Also at lunch was outgoing Endeavour CEO Steve O’Donohue – who announced in late September that he was leaving.
And who wasn’t exactly unhappy that O’Donohue is going? That would be billionaire Bruce Mathieson, Endeavour’s biggest shareholder.
Which made it all the more interesting that Bruce Mathieson Jr was also at the AHA lunch. We wonder if he made his thoughts known to Mervis that it was an interesting decision to appoint Carew before a new CEO was found?
To top it all off, long-time Mathieson family lieutenant and government relations guru David Curry was feted with an AHA lifetime achievement award.
We’re sure everyone was thrilled to be there celebrating together. NE
Short on transparency
For all his boasts of restoring trust and integrity in government, Chris Minns’ silence on a grant awarded to the Haven Foundation smacks of old-fashioned cronyism.
Questions need to be answered about this $20m funding package. It was promised to the Haven Foundation on the eve of Minns’ 2023 election victory, just weeks after the then opposition leader appointed Professor Allan Fels to lead a review of NSW toll road charges.
Fels and his daughter, Teresa, are directors of the Haven Foundation, a subsidiary of a mental health organisation called Mind Australia, which Fels has chaired for the past two years.
The timing of these twin announcements is enough of a red flag for any competent political opposition to seize upon (thankfully for Minns, there isn’t one in NSW). But if it’s true that Fels, who is incidentally a director at the Centre for Public Integrity, secured the funding outside of the formal channels, such as through a direct line to the premier, then Minns’ government isn’t operating close to the levels of integrity he’s hoping to achieve.
Here is Minns talking up his commitment to truth and transparency just a few months ago. “The people of NSW need to have faith that politicians and elected officials are acting in the public interest. That faith is central to a working and healthy democracy.”
Yet the Premier has repeatedly refused to confirm whether he and Fels discussed the Haven Foundation – either while he was in opposition or after winning government. Neither will Minns say if the foundation submitted a formal proposal for the funding.
Fels, meanwhile, has remained mute on the same questions.
Mind Australia’s chief executive, Gill Callister, told Margin Call that its staff had spent more than six years lobbying for funding, including from local and state MPs of all political persuasions, as well as “ministers in the previous NSW Liberal government”.
“The suggestion that funding for The Haven Foundation is in any way connected with, or reliant on, Professor Fels’ work with the NSW government is wrong – and it is disappointing that the validity of much-needed supported social housing for people experiencing mental health challenges is being questioned,” Callister said.
To be sure, it is not the work of Mind Australia being questioned, just the lack of transparency over how taxpayer funds appear to have been selected and apportioned. Talk about missing the point …
By its own admission, Mind Australia spent six years unsuccessfully lobbying previous Liberal governments, only to then receive a windfall $20m boost one month after Fels, its chairman, took a contract to review the state’s toll roads. Not connected? No discussions behind closed doors?
We wouldn’t be so cynical if Fels or Minns answered that simple question. But they haven’t, and it doesn’t appear that they will. Now why on earth would that be?
Dana Daniel By Dana Daniel
November 4 2024
The scandal-prone workplace inside Parliament House is still plagued by bullying and harassment complaints, a staff survey shows as the Department of Parliamentary Services' leadership remains under a cloud.
More than one in 10 employees (11 per cent) had experienced bullying or harassment, according to the results of the 2024 DPS Staff Survey, obtained by The Canberra Times.
Just 65 per cent of respondents said they were "confident that if I raised a concern [about workplace bullying or harassment] it would be reviewed, and appropriate action would be taken".
This masthead has confirmed that DPS secretary Rob Stefanic will not front Senate estimates on Monday, when the department's top executives are called to give evidence about the Australian Public Service's most secretive department.
ACT independent senator David Pocock said he was "deeply concerned about the lack of transparency around this department".
"I've had many current and former staff members come to me with concerns about the culture and leadership at DPS," Senator Pocock said.
The survey results come as DPS staff remain in the dark about the circumstances behind Mr Stefanic's mysterious leave, and how long it is expected to continue.
Department of Parliamentary Services secretary Rob Stefanic. Picture by Keegan Carroll
The DPS secretary remains absent almost four weeks after he informed staff by email on October 9 of his sudden leave. The department refuses to say whether he is being paid.
When Mr Stefanic fronted estimates in May, he was forced to deny allegations he had been in a relationship with former deputy secretary Cate Saunders while he was her boss, telling senators he had endured "privacy violations".
Acting secretary Jaala Hinchcliffe will appear at Monday's hearing and is expected to face questions about Mr Stefanic's leave and other matters, including the National Anti-Corruption Commission's October 3 raid on DPS in Parliament House.
In one in five bullying and harassment cases captured by the APS staff survey, the reported behaviour came from a senior executive service officer, while a supervisor was the alleged bully in 32 per cent of cases.
The alleged bullying or harassment was most likely to come from a fellow employee, making up 67 per cent of reported cases.
It was followed up on just 24 per cent of the time, even though 63 per cent of respondents said they had raised the behaviour with a supervisor.
Overall results hard to compare after DPS changed questions
The DPS staff survey results show that 62 per cent of employees would recommend the department as "a great place to work".
The department has changed the questions used in its annual survey, making it difficult to compare some results with other agencies or the APS average.
Most departments ask staff whether their agency is a "good place to work".
DPS previously asked if staff believed the senior executive team were "high quality", prompting a dismal response.
That survey, which was kept secret for three years after Mr Stefanic blocked its release, found that only 53 per cent of DPS staff believed it would be hard to get away with corruption in the workplace - a figure well below the overall APS mark of 71 per cent.
Both questions have since been dumped from the DPS survey.
The 2024 results show that 75 per cent of respondents agreed that "my branch head is interested in the work done by my team" and 66 per cent agreed "the SES manager for my branch communicates effectively".
In 2024, 73 per cent agreed that "DPS is committed to providing a safe and respectful workplace", while 72 per cent agreed "DPS provides adequate avenues to raise concerns about workplace bullying, harassment (including sexual harassment) or discrimination".
The 2024 DPS Staff Survey attracted 778 responses from May 13 to June 28, 2024.
The annual staff survey is intended to collect insights to assist in evaluation, planning, and targeting of action strategies to improve the workplace and staff wellbeing, the department says in an introduction to the results.
"The key objectives of this research were to measure staff perceptions across a range of workplace factors, and compare results against previous findings," it said.
Only about 70 per cent of questions were "comparable with previous DPS surveys".
The parliamentary workplace support service's phone line, which supports DPS and other parliamentary workplace employees, received 362 calls for counselling between October 1, 2023 and June 30, 2024, according to its annual report tabled last week.
