WESTERN Victoria MP and Scrutiny of Government assistant shadow minister, Bev McArthur, said it’s time Victorians learnt the truth about the Red Shirt’s Rort.
“The Labor Party ripped Victorians off for their own political survival,” she said.
“The stench of corruption surrounding the Red Shirts affair is finally swirling ever closer to the Andrews Labor Party.”
Earlier this week another Labor Party MP broke ranks and joined dumped, former Labor powerbroker, Adem Somyurek, and crossed the floor of the Victorian Parliament.
Labor MP, Kaushaliya Vaghela’s vote enabled the motion to pass, 19 to 17, and refer the alleged misuse of almost $400,000 in public funds by the Labor Party during the 2014 election campaign, to an expanded investigation by the Victorian Ombudsman and the Independent Broad-based Anti-Corruption Commission (IBAC).
Mr Somyurek, now an independent MP, moved a motion on Wednesday for the upper house to write to Victorian Ombudsman, Deborah Glass to expand the scope of a previous investigation.
“I make no criticism of the campaign or the field organisers,” Ms Glass said.
"But while some electorate officer work was done for some Members of Parliament, the arrangement to employ field organisers as electorate officers was an artifice to secure partial payment for the campaign out of parliamentary funds and was wrong.”
“There is undoubtedly a blurred line between permissible and impermissible uses of parliamentary funds, and what is or is not political activity prohibited by the Guide,” Ms Glass said.
The Ombudsman report found that the “purpose of the Field Organisers’ work was to win government for the ALP in the 58th Parliament, rather than to perform activities or representative responsibilities relevant to their nominating Members’ roles in the 57th Parliament.”
Mrs McArthur said that this week’s motion now requests an expanded joint investigation by the Victorian Ombudsman and IBAC into the Red Shirts rorts – and also broadens the investigation, she believes will specifically investigate ‘the role of the then opposition leader, the Honourable Daniel Andrews MP, in designing, propagating and facilitating the scheme’.
The Labor Party repaid the money when the ombudsman tabled her report in March 2018.
In the wake of the ombudsman's report, the Victorian opposition asked police to investigate the matter.
However, there wasn’t enough evidence for Victoria Police to lay charges at the time as Labor MP’s refused to be interviewed.
“The decision by Victorian Police not to lay charges in this matter has raised eyebrows in every pub in the state, every loungeroom and across every dinner table,” Mrs McArthur said.
“If this decision was complicated or influenced by political nuance or interference of any sort – Victorians deserve to know and the consequences of such should be forthcoming.
“The Labor Party ripped Victorians off for their own political survival.
“That it took a former Labor MP, and a soon to be former Labor MP, to make this happen – is a sign that things are really rotten in Victoria under Premier Daniel Andrews.”
Allegations were made in 2018 in the Victorian Parliament that Western Victoria MP, Gayle Tierney employed a gentleman that was authorised to work for 68 days at a cost of $20,559 to the taxpayer, but campaigned on the Lower House seat of South Barwon.
Ms Tierney’s office was contacted for a response to the joint investigation as to whether she may have concerns regarding the new and expanded investigation.
A government spokesperson responded on behalf of Ms Tierney, which stated “any matter referred to the Ombudsman is a matter for her (Ms Glass).”
IBAC is Victoria's agency responsible for preventing and exposing public sector corruption and police misconduct.
Its jurisdiction covers state and local government, police, parliament and the judiciary.
As part of an IBAC investigation, private or public examinations (hearings) may be held to gather further information.
This mechanism includes summoning witnesses to answer questions.
An examination is not a trial and cannot determine guilt or innocence.
