‘Tears were shed’: Gladys’ last stand

The anti-corruption watchdog alerted Ms Berejiklian to the fact they were investigating her on matters which questioned her ministerial conduct during her “close personal relationship” with disgraced former MP, Darryl Maguire.

Beginning in 2015, the secret relationship had only been revealed a year earlier when the Premier took the stand at an ICAC hearing, which exposed how Mr Maguire used his political standing for personal financial gain.

While she survived the hearing in 2020 – despite no-confidence motions across both houses in NSW parliament – being cast as the main subject in ICAC’s new public inquiry forced the Premier into resigning.

However, an investigation from The Sunday Telegraph documenting the 24 hours before her shock resignation revealed she had initially “planned to ride it out” and that she was “not intending to quit on Friday”.

She now looks set to be replaced by Dominic Perrottet, who is firming as NSW’s next Premier with a deal to install Stuart Ayres as his deputy.

The Treasurer formally declared his candidacy at a press conference in Sydney on Sunday night.

Ms Berejiklian quitting ‘best option for the party’

Quoting a Minister close to Ms Berejiklian, The Sunday Telegraph said the Premier was “happy and in high spirits” on Thursday, but by 12pm on Friday she had decided that resigning from her post as Premier was “the best option for the party”.

In those 24 hours Ms Berejiklian reportedly shared several meetings with her moderate-right faction members, Health Minister Brad Hazzard, Customer Service Minister Victor Dominello and Energy and Environment Minister Matt Kean, in an attempt to find a solution that might keep her in office.

They couldn’t and “tears were shed”, reported The Sunday Telegraph.

Fronting the media on Friday, she said her ultimate decision to resign was due to her “love and respect” for the people of NSW and the “high regard” she has for the office of Premier.

Despite this, would have had a few options to choose from.

She could have stood aside and deferred the position of Premier to someone else during the course of ICAC’s investigation. Ms Berejiklian, however, said this was “not an option”.

“The people of New South Wales need certainty as to who their leader is during these challenging times of the pandemic,” she said, adding that she was unsure how long it would take for the independent agency to finish their investigation.

She could have also continued as Premier despite ICAC’s findings but Ms Berejiklian said it would have been too disruptive at a critical time in the state’s management of the pandemic.

“I do not want to be a distraction from what should be the focus of the state government during this pandemic, which is the wellbeing of our citizens,” she said.

Grants given in then-boyfriend’s electorate under scrutiny

In the hour before Ms Berejiklian delivered her news, before the public and press were to know of her resignation, ICAC announced they would be investigating whether she did breach public trust, use her ministerial powers to promote her private interests and whether she allowed or encouraged the corrupt conduct of her then boyfriend, Mr Maguire.

In particular are two grants she awarded between 2016 and 2018 – a $20 million grant to the Riverina Conservatorium of Music in Wagga Wagga, and a grant which gave the Australian Clay Target Association Inc $5.5 million.

Signs the Premier’s involvement in the ICAC’s investigation re-emerged in December 2020, when the watchdog said they would be continuing their investigation into Mr Maguire, instead of drafting their submissions.

“The commission has decided to place the current submission process on hold pending the completion of some further investigative steps,” an ICAC spokeswoman said at the time.

In September this year, an ABC Investigations also revealed that in 2018, two ministerial advisers had come forward with information on Mr Maguire after he was forced to resign from the Liberal Party in July 2018.

This was in light of allegations that he abused his parliamentary role to broker property and business deals.

Mr Maguire has also admitted he knowingly lied to immigration officials while running a cash-for-visa scam which allowed Australian employers to earn a subsidy by falsely employing Chinese nationals.

The report shed light on the fact that confidential briefings had been prepared for the Premier by her chief legal adviser at the Department of Premier and Cabinet (DPC), which suggested she was aware her staffers were being referred to the ICAC.

However, to date, Ms Berejiklian has consistently denied her involvement or awareness in Mr Maguire’s corrupt activities, dismissing any skerrick of wrong doing on her part.

This too, was a message she emphasised in her resignation speech – the last one she would give as the Premier of NSW.

“I want to be very clear, in all the decisions I have ever made as a Minister or as Premier for New South Wales, my first consideration has always been the wellbeing and welfare of the people of this state,” she said on Friday.

“I state categorically, I have always acted with the highest level of integrity,” she continued, visibly upset.

“History will demonstrate that I have always executed my duties with the highest degree of integrity for the benefit of the people of NSW who I have had the privilege to serve.”

But with ICAC set to begin its public inquiry on October 18, only time will tell whether Ms Berejiklian’s parting message to her constituents was a bridge too far.