Education minister Yvette Berry has told the ACT integrity commission she doubts she'd have directed her staff to ensure a local construction firm didn't get a government contract because of concerns raised by the trade unions. It comes as the integrity watchdog continues its investigation into whether public officials acted inappropriately by handing a school upgrade project to another company against the recommendations of tender assessors.
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TVTranscript
00:00 It's the first time a minister has fronted up for a public hearing of the ACT Integrity
00:07 Commission.
00:09 Construction giant Lendlease was awarded the contract for the Campbell Primary School modernisation
00:13 project in late 2020, even though local firm Mantena was assessed as the cheaper, better
00:20 option.
00:21 Yvette Berry said she'd been aware of construction union concerns about Mantena, but denies that
00:26 prompted specific directions to not hand them the project.
00:30 "I just don't think it's something I would say," the minister told the commissioner.
00:34 "I don't give direction in that kind of way."
00:37 But it could have been the case that there was a general understanding the CFMEU were
00:41 unhappy with Mantena.
00:43 A former education official had told the Inquiry that then-Acting Director-General of the Directorate,
00:49 Rebecca Cross, informed him Miss Berry's Chief of Staff, Joshua Seremitis, didn't want Mantena
00:55 to get the contract, something Miss Cross denies.
00:58 "I don't recall it, and I think if that had come up in the conversation, I would recall
01:04 it."
01:05 In a previous hearing, CFMEU National Secretary Zach Smith admitted the union did have concerns
01:10 about Mantena, though he doesn't recall them being expressed to the minister or her Chief
01:15 of Staff, Mr Seremitis.
01:17 Miss Berry says she doesn't recall how she found out about the concerns and says she
01:20 wasn't aware of the detail.
01:22 Mr Seremitis is yet to give evidence, with hearings adjourned until later this month.
01:27 [BLANK_AUDIO]