INSIDE CITY HALL PROBE
Council under scrutiny as lawyers and watchdog take note
A MESSAGE from a top Brisbane lawyer has halted a meeting and shone a light on the extreme caution being exercised as Cairns Regional Council faces a corruption watchdog probe.
A MESSAGE from a top Brisbane lawyer has halted a meeting and shone a light on the extreme caution being exercised as Cairns Regional Council faces a corruption watchdog probe.
A foreign figure sat in the gallery at the most recent council meeting – not a runof-the-mill planning officer, cranky resident or environmental activist decrying the plight of exiled flying foxes.
He had a crisp suit, dark tie and a keen eye on proceedings under orders as an investigator for the Crime and Corruption Commission.
His presence was the most conspicuous sign to date of a CCC investigation which involved two officers setting up shop at the Cairns council chambers last week.
Insiders said the council had been on high alert and bills were racking up as lawyers were called in to ensure adherence to the intricacies of the Local Government Act.
That careful legal oversight was on show when Mayor Bob Manning adjourned a meeting for half an hour to seek legal advice from McCullough Robertson partner Troy Webb.
“We’ve taken some advice from Mr Webb, and we’ve talked around this at some length,” Cr Manning said.
He later added Mr Webb “has been listening”.
Hiring one of the state’s top local government lawyers to tune in for meetings comes alongside several other expensive legal costs headed ratepayers’ way.
Save Paradise Palms president Clive Abbott expects a $200,000 bill for his group’s appeal against the Kewarra Beach development approval – and he anticipates the council’s costs will be higher.
Mr Abbott confirmed the group raised concerns over the project with the Office of the Independent Assessor but said the CCC’s involvement came from left field.
“Our position going forward in relation to the CCC is that we have no role to play in what it may or may not be doing,” he said.
“We are sitting on the fence and watching with interest.”
The council was also ordered on Friday to pay legal costs for a would-be Trinity Beach shopping centre developer over a Planning and Environment Court appeal.
There is no indication of wrongdoing in the Paradise Palms approval process, and the Cairns Post understands the CCC is looking at all major recent developments. It is also looking into the role, if any, Unity Team donations and loans to Cr Manning may have had on decisions.
The mayor’s financial troubles were already public knowledge when liquidators wound up his failed business Events NQ in 2016.
He avoided bankruptcy, which would have made him ineligible to be a councillor, after receiving loans from property lawyer Ranjit Singh and former NQEA boss Don Fry – a close friend and former colleague.
Those loans have been declared on the mayor’s register of interest but dollar figures are unknown, and do not have to be declared on the document.
The Cairns Post understands CCC investigators have questioned councillors about Singaporean firm Aspial’s stalled $550m Nova City eight-tower apartment development in the CBD.
Mr Singh acted for the company and has been an outspoken proponent for development across the region as Cairns branch president for the Urban Development Institute of Australia.
The Holding Redlich Cairns partner did not wish to comment but the CCC has not suggested any foul play on his part.
It has stressed that “these inquiries relate to allegations, and all allegations should be treated as unsubstantiated until a final outcome is reached”.
It appears the watchdog is looking through all avenues with a fine-tooth comb – and councillors have faced questions over the Crystalbrook Collection hotels, the Cairns Aquarium, electoral donations and other matters.
The Unity Team made the surprise decision not to accept any donations ahead of the 2020 elections, having attracted
almost $200,000 before the previous vote in 2016.
The Queensland government in 2018 banned electoral donations from property developers, which had previously made up a significant portion of the contributors to electoral hopefuls across the state.
A council spokesman said legal advice was only sought to ensure council proceedings were appropriate.
The council’s legal bill for 2019-20 was $1.8m and has reached $1.6m so far in 2020-21.
The spokesman did not directly answer whether the council had given investigators access to its servers but said the council was “co-operating with the CCC as and when required”.
The council and the mayor have not responded to questions over Cr Manning’s business loans or Unity Team donations in relation to the CCC inquiry.