A NSW Liberal MP voted for a controversial council plan to rezone land for a 2000-lot residential development owned by Nathan Tinkler months after receiving a secret $18,000 campaign donation from the businessman.
When Bart Bassett was a local councillor in May 2011, he voted for a new residential land strategy for the City of Hawkesbury on Sydney’s north-west fringe. The strategy favoured Mr Tinkler’s company, Buildev.
The strategy was approved six months after the coal baron gave $18,000 to Mr Bassett’s successful campaign for the state seat of Londonderry.
The donation was revealed in internal Liberal Party documents tabled at the NSW Independent Commission Against Corruption.
Mr Bassett was regularly briefed by Buildev, which in March 2012 made an application to then planning minister Brad Hazzard to give the 180-hectare block high priority “gateway status”.
Mr Bassett, Mr Tinkler and Buildev executives are due to give evidence at the Independent Commission Against Corruption this week and the $18,000 donation is likely to come up.
Mr Bassett is still a member of the Liberal Party sitting in Parliament, unlike nine other MPs who have stood aside or resigned from Parliament in the wake of ICAC revelations about illegal campaign donations.
Mr Bassett did not return messages.
The Buildev campaign to rezone the site in North Richmond known as Yobarnie started in 2008 but suffered a setback about three months before Mr Tinkler made the donation to Mr Bassett’s campaign.
Referred by Kelly
Buildev applied in July 2010 directly to then ALP planning minister Tony Kelly to rezone the rural land for residential use, using his power under the Metropolitan Development Program.
While ICAC has found Mr Kelly corrupt in relation to other matters, Mr Kelly decided Buildev’s application was too controversial for him to handle alone, since councillors from the City of Hawkesbury including Mr Bassett had disclosed accepting “less than significant, non-pecuniary” donations from Buildev via their party.
source: afr.com
STUDIO 3 NEWCASTLE AUSTRALIA 