MP snaps at ICAC hearing

Mr Sidoti, a former Liberal who now sits as an independent, has denied accusations by the Independent Commission Against Corruption that he tried to pressure councillors in his electorate to make planning decisions that would benefit him and his family.

The former sports minister also denies he breached ministerial guidelines by failing to disclose property interests in the area.

The ICAC decided to hold public hearings this week after Mr Sidoti took the“unorthodox” step of producing new material supporting his evidence.

It came in the form of a statutory declaration signed by former Five Dock Chamber of Commerce vice-president Glen Haron, which supported claims made by Mr Sidoti before the ICAC in April.

Mr Sidoti had been accused of making up evidence of a chance meeting with Mr Haron while walking his dog where he was reminded of organising a meeting with local councillors and business leaders.

On Friday, Mr Sidoti snapped while being grilled by counsel assisting the commission Rob Ranken about how the statement came to be and suggested parts of it had been contradicted by Mr Haron’s own evidence.

“You accused me of making something up, which is unacceptable. Unacceptable,” the MP said.

“People have reputations and you destroy them.”

It came on the day NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian announced she was resigning after becoming the subject of a separate ICAC investigation.

It had emerged in hearings this week that Mr Haron did not write the document, which was allegedly drafted by Mr Sidoti’s sister Lisa Anderson and her husband David.

Mr Ranken said Mr Haron told the commission he had “no recollection” about telling the MP how Liberal councillors were invited to the business chamber meeting, as Mr Sidoti had claimed in April.

Mr Sidoti said he didn’t agree with that part of Mr Haron’s evidence but said the document overall confirmed he had not been lying on the last occasion.

Mr Ranken said at the last hearing Mr Sidoti told the ICAC he hadn’t remembered the meeting until Mr Haron reminded him about it when they ran into each other in Drummoyne.

Mr Sidoti replied that he was “trying to confirm” the details of the meeting and was “always of the impression” he had organised it.

He became emotional and began talking over Mr Ranken, saying his life was “a wreck” and asked if he was expected to “sit there and twiddle my thumbs” while his reputation was being tarnished.

Chief Commissioner Peter Hall QC cautioned Mr Sidoti that if he did not settle down it would take a long time for the hearing to conclude.

“I’ve got plenty of time, Commissioner,” he replied.

The tense exchanges came after Mr Sidoti’s sister was pressed on her involvement in preparing Mr Haron’s document.

She said after the ICAC public inquiry finished in April, she was asked to “throw something together” about what was known about the interaction between Mr Sidoti and Mr Haron.

Mrs Anderson, however, refused the suggestion it was intended to be a draft document for Mr Haron.

“What I’m suggesting to you is that from a very early stage following the conclusion of the public inquiry (in April), you took particular steps to maintain control over the form of the evidence and the statement that would be given by Mr Haron,” Mr Ranken said. “What do you say to that?”

“That’s nonsense,” Ms Anderson replied.

The ICAC heard she and her husband called Mr Haron on April 28 this year to ask if he would be prepared to give a statement about running into Mr Sidoti.

“My memory is he said, being as busy as he was, he preferred something is prepared for him,” Ms Anderson said.

Mr Ranken commented that “fortuitously” a document had already been created before Ms Anderson had ever spoken with Mr Haron.

She went on to prepare a draft for Mr Haron based on her conversations with him over the phone, she told the ICAC.

Ms Anderson said Mr Haron ultimately had the final say about agreeing to the documents’ contents: “In the end if Mr Haron wasn’t happy, that’s how it is, that’s how the cookie crumbles.”

Mr Ranken said that claim “didn’t make sense” as she decided to leave in a part of the statement she knew he “wasn’t sure about”, after he informed so her in an email.

Mr Ranken suggested she had controlled Mr Haron’s version to ensure it was consistent with her brother’s.

“I did the best I could,” she said. “Everything went through the eyes of people far smarter and experienced than I.”

As tensions rose she asked Mr Ranken “how stupid” he thought she was to deliberately attempt to mislead the watchdog.

On Thursday, Mr Haron was called to give evidence and said he largely agreed with the contents of the statutory declaration.

He said the chance meeting with Mr Sidoti on The Parade in Drummoyne did occur but that he believed parts of the document were “mildly inaccurate”.

The hearing concluded at the end of Friday afternoon.

A final report is expected in early 2022.