‘Overwhelming evidence of corruption’: Minister defends action as plea details emerge

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Local Government Minister Ron Hoenig has defended intervening in proceedings involving a former Labor mayor, saying the matter needed to be dealt with “promptly and thoroughly” because of the “overwhelming evidence of corruption and serious misconduct”.

In question time on Tuesday, Hoenig said he “pressed” the Office of Local Government to refer allegations against former Bayside mayor Bill Saravinovski to the NSW Civil & Administrative Tribunal. This masthead on Monday revealed secret evidence alleging the senior Labor minister pushed OLG’s deputy secretary Brett Whitworth on five occasions despite protests that Hoenig’s involvement was improper.

The Herald also confirmed the Office of Local Government struck a plea deal with Saravinovski’s lawyers before a hearing in the NSW Civil & Administrative Tribunal. Both parties submitted that the former mayor should receive a reprimand rather than being disqualified from office.

Local Government Minister Ron Hoenig has defended his actions in parliament.

Whitworth provided evidence during a secret hearing in September alleging that Hoenig pushed him five times to accelerate a submission concerning Saravinovski to NCAT because of a looming Labor preselection in Bayside. Separately, a series of Machiavellian plays ensured senior frontbencher Steve Kamper’s chief of staff Ed McDougall replaced Saravinovski as the council’s mayor.

Facing questions in parliament about the evidence provided by Whitworth, Hoenig said he was concerned about delays in implementing proceedings despite “overwhelming evidence of corruption and misconduct” levelled against Saravinovski in a brief provided by the Independent Commission Against Corruption.

“I was mindful that it was taking so long to complete the referral to NCAT, and with an election looming, and ... the Labor Party preselection process needing to occur, the matter needed to be dealt with promptly and thoroughly,” he said.

The OLG had decided the matter was “serious” and required referral to the tribunal to “seek the disqualification” of Saravinovski, but had “done nothing”, Hoenig said during question time.

“I pressed the agency of which I am accountable to this house to move promptly, thoroughly, efficiently and quickly.”

Hoenig was asked in parliament whether Whitworth was being truthful when he alleged Hoenig raised Saravinovski’s “preselection, the timing of hearings and any public knowledge of the proceedings”.

“Mr Whitworth is a decorated public servant whose views and advice I value and recollections could differ in respect of the nature of conversation,” Hoenig responded.

Asked about whether he was aware of the plea deal with Saravinovski and why it had been struck, Hoenig told the Herald: “Where serious misconduct and corruption is evident, those matters should run their full course to send a strong message to the sector that the state government takes councillor integrity seriously.”

The ICAC closed an investigation into Saravinovski in late 2022, passing a report to the Office of Local Government. The matter was referred to the tribunal in March 2024, which nearly a year later issued the former mayor with a reprimand.

Saravinovski has since been charged with three counts of providing misleading evidence to the ICAC, and the matter is due to be heard on November 20. He has not been charged with or found guilty of corruption.

During his in-camera evidence on September 19, Whitworth said he was on holidays when he discovered his agency had struck an agreement with Saravinovski’s lawyers that would result in the former Labor mayor receiving a reprimand in exchange for pleading guilty to misconduct, according to sources briefed on the matter.

“The parties jointly submit that a reprimand is the most appropriate response to a finding of misconduct in this case,” the NCAT judgment from February this year.

Bill Saravinovski, pictured last year, faced court accused of giving misleading evidence.

Saravinovski faced a suspension from council of up to six months, or disqualification from holding civic office for up to five years. But before it got to that point, he was disendorsed as a candidate by Labor Party headquarters.

A spokesman for the OLG confirmed there was “an agreed statement of facts” between the agency and Saravinovski, saying the Labor powerbroker “admitted to breaches of Bayside council’s code of conduct while he was mayor” including failing to fully disclose his relationship with a property developer.

“The decision to take action against Mr Saravinovski has been justified by the outcome in the NCAT matter and subsequent actions commenced by other agencies. The legal costs incurred by OLG in dealing with the NCAT matter are appropriate for the circumstances,” he said.

Premier Chris Minns again defended Hoenig on Tuesday, saying “maybe he was caught between a rock and a hard place”.

“But given the information in front of me, I think he made the right decision,” he said.

“Minister Hoenig knew about a referral from the ICAC. He’d known that not much had been done about it for years, and an election was coming up. In those circumstances, having known about it, I guarantee you, the first question from the opposition would have been, ‘Why did you sit on this information?’”

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