John Barilaro left a corporate position in New York after it became “untenable” as a result of severe scrutiny.
A fortnight ago, the former NSW deputy premier and state leader of the Nationals was named the NSW Trade Commissioner to the Americas. His appointment sparked significant indignation and two separate parliamentary inquiries.
Amy Brown, the CEO of Investment NSW and trade secretary, testified before a parliamentary inquiry on Wednesday that she had withdrawn a verbal job offer for the coveted $500,000-per-year position of New York-based promoter of NSW in September of last year.
Jenny West, who was the deputy secretary at the time, was subsequently given the three-year contract before Ms. Brown’s then-boss, Mr. Barilaro, altered the hiring criteria.
Shortly after, Mr. Barilaro made the decision to leave politics, and he was then offered the prestigious position in New York City, which he was scheduled to start in a week.
He announced his resignation from the office late on Thursday, claiming it had become untenable and a distraction for the state government.
Given the amount of media attention this appointment has received, he declared in a statement, “It is evident that my taking up this post is currently not tenable.”
“I feel that my appointment will continue to be a distraction and prevent this crucial function from accomplishing what it was intended to do, which is why I made this decision.
I must emphasize that I have always insisted that I followed the process and eagerly anticipate the review’s findings.
Ms. Brown acknowledged receiving notice of Mr. Barilaro’s choice.
She said, “Mr. John Barilaro informed me this evening that he is resigning from his position as Senior Trade and Investment Commissioner Americas, effective immediately.”
“At this moment, I ask that his privacy be respected.”
Two inquiries looking into the appointment would still receive assistance from Investment NSW. Therefore, it is not proper to add any more commentary.
For Mr. Barilaro to dwell in, a portion of the Australian consulate in New York had been renovated for close to $1 million.
Mr. Barilaro was to begin working in the Manhattan office on July 12 and received a salary of $487,000 plus a $16,000 stipend.
His choice follows Transport Minister David Elliott’s hours-long plea for his former government colleague to act honorably.
“I expect him to resign and do the right thing,” Mr. Elliott said to Sky News on Thursday.
“Quite obviously, when you become the narrative about an appointment, well, then the appointment might not be in the best interest of the people of NSW.”
He shouldn’t be travelling to New York, in my very strong opinion, and I’m fairly sure that’s the opinion of the majority of people in this state. I’ll let the parliamentary inquiry and the premier’s investigation determine that.
Stuart Ayres, the minister of investment and trade, also disclosed that he was concerned after Mr. Barilaro texted him late last year to express interest in the position.
According to Mr. Ayres, who spoke to reporters on Thursday, “He contacted me via text message… indicating that he was interested in it.”
As Mr. Ayres recounted, “I told him that they would be publicly published and that he, like any other private citizen, will be able to apply.”
He acknowledged that Mr. Barilaro’s nomination would be divisive politically, but he claimed he lacked the power to order his old colleague to step down.
Ms. Brown, who last month came under the limelight due to her involvement in the contentious New York job, spoke in-depth about how her faith motivates her management of 6000 employees in a February interview.
According to Ms. Brown, a Christian online magazine, “What would Jesus do if he were me in these life circumstances, in this work, with this issue before me and serving the people that I lead?”
“He was there for the people when they needed him, and he really put everyone else first.”
Due to the fact that her acts are a part of God’s “plan,” Ms. Brown claimed that he gave her a sense of relaxation from her “exhausting” job.
When every consequence rests on you, she added, “it started to dawn on me how hard it is to have to live that way.”
“That is a terribly exhausting way to live,” the speaker said, “if you don’t perform to the highest standard at that meeting or if you’re not in the right place at the right time.”
Having children gives you that perspective, and since you don’t have enough time to do everything and be everywhere, you must let God take control.
Ms. Brown claimed that she made an effort to lead by considering “the benefit of your people.”
According to Ms. Brown, “I believe God truly communicates through the leadership of Christians in that servant leadership approach.”
“You place the well-being of your employees at the center of how you lead, what you do, and the decisions you make,” someone once said.
In 2022, Ms. Brown became a member of the “Club 600” of the NSW public service, earning $614,000 a year in taxpayer funds to run the Department of Enterprise, Investment, and Trade.
The revocation of Ms West’s ideal job offer, according to Ms Brown, caused her to be “very distressed” and resulted in a “irreconcilable” relationship with Investment NSW.
After three years of performing public service, Ms. West is no longer employed by the government and received an unknown payment.
In August 2021, Ms. West received an offer for a position in New York with a salary of $487,000 plus a $16,000 cost-of-living allowance.
The hiring procedure for the position was modified in September by Mr. Barilaro, who established the position in 2020 along with four other comparable positions.
On October 1, Ms. West’s employment offer was withdrawn, and Mr. Barilaro was awarded the position in May 2022.
Ms. Brown testified to the inquiry that she had expressed worries that Mr. Barilaro would reject her proposed candidate for the New York position and that she was unaware of any inquiries about the position made by Mr. Barilaro to Stuart Ayres, his successor as NSW trade minister.
However, Ms. Brown was the ultimate decision-maker for the position, according to NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet.
Separate from the legislative investigation, Mr. Perrottet launched a private investigation into Mr. Barilaro’s selection.
He stated on Tuesday, “I will consider the recommendations and I will take the necessary action.”
Chris Minns, the head of the NSW opposition, criticized Mr. Perrottet for delaying taking action against Mr. Barilaro.
It’s striking that the premier chose to leave rather than fire John Barilaro, Mr. Minns added.
“Mr. Barilaro ought never to have been given this position in the first place.”
“Serious questions about how he obtained the position remain, and the parliamentary inquiry will continue to look into those.”
Ms. West will testify in the parliamentary hearing when it resumes on Wednesday.