ICAC Operation Rosny LIVE updates: Robert Assaf continues evidence after claims Angus Taylor knew of NSW Reformers work

Key PostsWelcome to day fiveBy Jessica McSweeneyGood morning and welcome to the fifth day of public hearings as the Independent Commission Against Corruption investigates links between Liberal Party operatives, fugitive developer Jean Nassif and Catholic Schools NSW.We’re expecting another full day of evidence from former Catholic Schools NSW staffer and founding member of hard right Liberal factional group the NSW Reformers, Robert Assaf. Before we begin, let’s recap what we learnt yesterday:Assaf told the commission he thought it was fair that Jean-Claude Perrottet be paid using money from prohibited donor and hotelier Michael O’Hara to support his work recruiting conservative Liberal Party members in the Hills.Assaf agreed that monthly payments from O’Hara to Christian Ellis’ Beckington Group were used to support Reformers activities rather than genuine consulting work.When asked if he was aware of donation laws, Assaf said he didn’t believe the Reformers to be a political party and therefore “didn’t think the law applied to us”.Assaf said the Reformers sounded “spooky” in the media but were “just a bunch of 20-year-old people trying to figure things out”.The right wing of the Liberal Party is comparable to the film Braveheart, Assaf told the commission: “these warring kingdoms, and they would slaughter each other, and then every now and then they’d come together for a big fight, and that was how the Right was”. Latest Posts8.57amKey allegations under scrutiny by ICACBy Jessica McSweeneyThis inquiry is wide-ranging and covers three main allegations. Here’s a quick reminder of what the ICAC is investigating:The commission is investigating if Christian Ellis, Jeremy Greenwood, Robert Assaf and Jean-Claude Perrottet, and potentially others, schemed to solicit funds from sources including prohibited donor and hotelier Michael O’Hara, and Catholic Schools NSW at the direction of then CEO Dallas McInerney, to further the interests of right-wing Liberal factional group the Reformers.Whether Christian Ellis, Jeremy Greenwood and Charles Perrottet solicited unlawful donations from fugitive property developer Jean Nassif, in exchange for work to damage the political career of MP David Elliott and remove former building commissioner David Chandler from his position. Potentially unlawful conduct by Strathfield Councillors Sharangan Maheswaran, who worked for Nassif’s Toplace, and/or Karen Pensabene towards fellow councillor Matthew Blackmore, including conduct that could involve blackmail.For a full break down of all the strands of this ICAC inquiry, senior writer Alexandra Smith explains it all here:8.57amLiberal frontbencher captured on ICAC wiretap tipping off ReformersBy Michael McGowan and Bevan ShieldsA NSW Liberal frontbencher was captured by wire tap helping party apparatchiks now at the centre of an anti-corruption probe evade a statewide manhunt to force them before a parliamentary inquiry into their alleged links to a fugitive property developer.Chris Rath, the shadow minister for planning and the arts, was captured tipping off at least one of the members of the so-called NSW Reformers about the location of process servers on the ICAC’s tap.NSW Liberal MP Chris Rath.Oscar ColmanThe servers were hired to track them down during an upper house inquiry, set up after allegations of branch stacking in The Hills Shire Council emerged in 2022.The revelation is significant because Rath’s actions may have hindered the probe’s attempts to expose some of the allegations, which are now at the heart of the ICAC’s Operation Rosny.Welcome to day fiveBy Jessica McSweeneyGood morning and welcome to the fifth day of public hearings as the Independent Commission Against Corruption investigates links between Liberal Party operatives, fugitive developer Jean Nassif and Catholic Schools NSW.We’re expecting another full day of evidence from former Catholic Schools NSW staffer and founding member of hard right Liberal factional group the NSW Reformers, Robert Assaf. Before we begin, let’s recap what we learnt yesterday:Assaf told the commission he thought it was fair that Jean-Claude Perrottet be paid using money from prohibited donor and hotelier Michael O’Hara to support his work recruiting conservative Liberal Party members in the Hills.Assaf agreed that monthly payments from O’Hara to Christian Ellis’ Beckington Group were used to support Reformers activities rather than genuine consulting work.When asked if he was aware of donation laws, Assaf said he didn’t believe the Reformers to be a political party and therefore “didn’t think the law applied to us”.Assaf said the Reformers sounded “spooky” in the media but were “just a bunch of 20-year-old people trying to figure things out”.The right wing of the Liberal Party is comparable to the film Braveheart, Assaf told the commission: “these warring kingdoms, and they would slaughter each other, and then every now and then they’d come together for a big fight, and that was how the Right was”. 1 of 1