Buck's party and housewarming came in months before lucrative schools gig, inquiry told

The Age

20 hours ago

On Tuesday morning, the inquiry was taken through a series of text messages between Berry and Manning from February to July 2019.
Manning invited Berry to his housewarming party in March and the following month they caught up for drinks at the Collaroy Hotel. In May, Manning attended Berry's buck's party.
'It wasn't Mr Manning's responsibility to organise the whole event, he was organising a group of people that he knew, and I knew,' Berry said.
Counsel assisting Jamie Darams, SC, asked Berry if the pair regularly caught up during that period. 'I don't have a recollection it was consistent,' Berry replied.
Text messages show Berry and Manning met on July 25, and Berry started at the schools unit less than a week later.
'I'm right in thinking that prior to you … starting this work, there wasn't any procurement process was there?' Darams asked. 'I hadn't yet submitted a proposal to School Infrastructure,' Berry replied.
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On 29 July, NSW Education Department executive and contractor Erik Maranik told Berry he would like 'to focus him on all things property'.
Berry told the inquiry there was an 'in-house property team in schools that wasn't working effectively with the infrastructure planning group, wasn't looking sensibly at options to acquire land to build new schools on'.
School building work was delayed, he said because 'there was no land to put them on'.
'The pressing issues were Wentworth Point and Chatswood', where there were election commitments to build schools.
'Both of those opportunities involved Transport for NSW, and Mr Manning knew I had contacts and relationships within Transport,' Berry said.
He told the inquiry another 'problem site' was a planned school at Westmead. Berry said there had been discussions with the then-minister's office about compulsory acquisition of people's homes and parkland 'that was causing some discomfort in government'.
The ICAC is investigating allegations Manning directed contracts and high-paid external roles to close friends and associates. The nature and extent of the relationship between Manning and Berry is a matter of particular interest in the investigation.
From 2018 to 2022, Berry and Heathwest had nine engagements with the school building unit for which the firm was paid over $3 million, the ICAC has heard.
Manning was scheduled to front the inquiry on Tuesday, but his long-awaited first appearance was moved to Thursday. Tuesday was Berry's third appearance at the inquiry.
Berry told the inquiry that he started at School Infrastructure without a formal contract in place. 'You trusted Mr Manning to sort it out?' Darams asked. 'Yes, I believed he would.'
In mid-August, another contractor, Stuart Suthern-Brunt, emailed HR adviser Wendy O'Brien to say Berry had been brought in to School Infrastructure as a 'special adviser to the property team'.
In early September, Berry emailed Manning to say he should formalise Heathwest's appointment for services to the agency. He suggested the role of senior adviser, including head of the property team, for a 12-month contract at $2650 a day.
Heathwest's engagement letter outlined services the consultancy would provide to the schools unit, including a senior infrastructure adviser, leading the property team, and developing procurement and finances.
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It also included 'leading the transition of TAFE Property and Logistics functions into SINSW, including undertaking the role of COO TAFE Infrastructure'.
Berry told the inquiry that Heathwest had separately been doing consulting work for TAFE, including on how schools and the training organisation could 'jointly plan asset creation' or 'joined up learning opportunities for students'.
In June he approached Manning to 'talk about SINSW and TAFE,' the inquiry heard.
Berry also told the commission he was unsuccessful in five tenders with School Infrastructure.
Last week the inquiry heard Manning and Berry were in contact in the lead-up to his registration for a pre-tender scheme in 2017.
Berry on Tuesday disputed allegations Heathwest had a commercial advantage regarding the firm providing investor assurance services.