Parliament’s Audit Committee has launched a new inquiry into the alleged tech lobbying scandal embroiling Services Australia, the National Disability Insurance Agency and a consulting firm linked to former Services minister Stuart Robert.
Terms of reference published on Friday show the committee will examine procurement matters that last year triggered an independent review of the contracts involved by former head of the Public Service Dr Ian Watt.
The contracts were identified as being linked to a Canberra consulting firm, which was set up by Mr Robert’s friends and political fundraiser.
Unlike the review, the new inquiry will go beyond officials and agency records to examine “the conduct of entities or persons involved in the activities considered by the Watt review, including issues of culture and probity”.
Mr Robert announced earlier this month that he would retire from politics after 16 years in Parliament.
The independent review by Mr Watt found alarming patterns of poor procurement practices. It recommended more than a dozen of the contracts it examined that were worth $374 million be further investigated, despite finding no “clear misconduct” of officials.
However, the Watt review’s scope did not allow it to examine the behaviour of the tech companies, ministers, their staff, or the consulting firm at the centre of the scandal, Synergy 360.
The review was last month considered as part of a wider inquiry into government procurement by the Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit chaired by Labor’s Julian Hill. But that inquiry is nearing a final report and is already examining a range of other procurement incidents.
“Given the seriousness and complexity of the issues that have emerged already from the Watt report regarding Synergy 360 and apparently Stuart Robert MP, the committee as elected to initiate a new inquiry solely focused on these matters,” Chair of the Audit Committee, Julian Hill told InnovationAus.com on Friday.
Synergy 360 is a consulting firm set up by Mr Robert’s former friend, business partner and political fundraiser. According to leaked emails obtained by The Sydney Morning Herald, Mr Robert provided advice to the company and met with its executives and clients.
Mr Robert denies helping the firm or its clients win contracts and any suggestion of wrongdoing.
The emails show the Canberra firm charges its clients, including large technology multinationals vying for lucrative government contracts, a retainer and a share of the government contracts they win.
“Synergy 360 was being paid by companies including Indian software giant Infosys and American technology giant Unisys for access to Member for Fardden’s [Mr Robert’s] office,” Government Services minister Bill Shorten told Parliament in March.
Synergy 360 is not a registered lobbyist and claims it does not engage in lobbying activities, despite its meetings with parliamentarians and helping clients to land contracts.
The company’s owners have already fronted a wider inquiry into procurement where one of the shareholders and the former political fundraiser for Mr Robert, John Margerison, told the inquiry he had received no benefit from Synergy 360. But he revealed he had directed his accountant to send the earnings from Synergy 360 to a company called Australia Property Trust, which was part owned by Mr Robert.
The firm’s executives and potentially Mr Robert may be called to give evidence again, this time to the new, dedicated inquiry announced Friday.
“The committee is awaiting further evidence of interested parties which will inform public hearings to come,” Mr Hill said.
Mr Robert announced in early May he would leave Parliament “in the coming weeks” to focus on his family.
Mr Robert’s office was contacted for comment.
