Embattled NSW Finance Minister, Greg Pearce, has rejected claims he gave top public official jobs to friends, saying all his appointments were based on merit.
Mr Pearce appointed his private secretary’s husband, former Law Society president, Kim Garling, to a $300,000-a-year position as WorkCover Independent Review Officer last year, News Ltd reports.
Mr Pearce also appointed former Freehills partner, Geoffrey Levy, to head up the Government’s property assets taskforce.
A firm Mr Levy chairs, Cromwell Property, then won the right to buy Government property which the taskforce recommended selling for $405 million.
A spokeswoman for Mr Pearce said the appointments were ‘based on merit’.
News Ltd also reports Mr Pearce introduced green slip reforms, expected to make insurance companies millions, after meetings with the industry set up by controversial Liberal lobbyist, Michael Photios’ firm.
NSW Opposition Leader, John Robertson, says he will move in the NSW Parliament this week to refer Mr Pearce to the Independent Commission Against Corruption after he used taxpayer funds to pay for a personal trip to Canberra.
The minister made the trip to the capital on the same day that reports emerged he’d been helped out of parliament during a late night debate because he was too drunk to continue.
He has publicly apologised for both incidents and will take a month off work to recover from ‘stress and exhaustion’.
Source: skynews