A damning report by Victoria's Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission this month revealed three senior public servants from what was then the Department of Jobs, Precincts and Regions withheld or provided misleading information about the payment of pandemic support grants to 9000 ineligible businesses. IBAC commissioner Victoria Elliott said there had been a "clear failure to act in line with the high integrity standards expected of Victoria's public officers".
IBAC did not name the trio, but The Age has confirmed the two most senior now work in management positions running the National Disability Insurance Agency. The NDIA, which supports 782,000 people, has refused to respond to questions about whether it will take any action as a result of the watchdog's findings.
People with Disability Australia chief executive Megan Spindler-Smith said the NDIA needed to uphold the highest standards of integrity and accountability. "People with disability need to be able to trust the NDIA and the people making decisions about our supports and our lives," she said.
Transparency International Australia CEO Clancy Moore said the IBAC report described behaviour contrary to the Australian Public Service's values. "Tone from the top is important," he said.
IBAC's investigation found widespread rorting of the Business Costs Assistance Program. Businesses had to be registered for GST to claim grants worth up to $97,200 each. In November 2021, the department's integrity services unit estimated almost $285 million had been paid to businesses that were ineligible but had claimed grants by legally backdating their GST registration. That information was included in a report brief intended for then-minister Martin Pakula and the state auditor-general.
IBAC found that the deputy secretary directed the information be deleted after discussing it with the associate secretary, who also failed to disclose the suspected loss to department secretary Simon Phemister. IBAC's own analysis estimated about $257 million was paid to 9000 ineligible businesses, with only $8 million repaid so far.
The watchdog concluded there was a "substantial failure" to provide frank and fearless advice. IBAC also found the deputy secretary provided misleading information to now-premier Ben Carroll when Carroll took over the portfolio in 2022.
Both senior public servants defended their actions. The deputy secretary told IBAC they simply followed the associate secretary's instructions to remove the figures, which was "entirely reasonable", and believed Pakula was aware of the issue. The associate secretary said they did not believe payments to businesses that backdated GST were disallowed and that IBAC's assertion of deliberate withholding was "simply untrue".
IBAC rejected these arguments, saying: "The convoluted rationalisation of the department's decision to withhold information ... suggests that ethics and integrity were secondary considerations in the face of scrutiny."
Pakula told IBAC that public servants could not be excused from giving frank advice simply because it may anger their minister. The report noted that because the public servants were no longer employed by the Victorian department, its current secretary was "unable to take further action in relation to their identified conduct".