As with the one I just posted, this “room hire” was another cover up for a night of boozing, this time after a Great Ocean Road tourism dinner hosted by the WCC.
The function was legitimate, the booze up afterwards at our expense – $434 worth – was not.
Here is what City Growth Manager Andrew Paton had to say:
“I wasn’t aware of any alcohol to be paid, certainly wasn’t aware of this list, it’s the first time that I’ve seen this list. I’m shocked. So, $434 of alcohol that we don’t know who was consuming.
“It wasn’t for everyone at the conference, because VTIC paid all the costs. Wow. There was no communication to me that that alcohol was going to be funded by Council. I had no visibility of it. ”
“Wow” is an understatement.
Here is what Mr McMahon, who put the bill on his credit card, had to say:
” …what each LGA would do is pay for after the function drinks basically. So, the receipt for VTIC was for effectively the bar tab.
“It was drinks after they finished … We were in a room. And then we moved out of that room to the bar. And then I paid for that …
“It was what I was asked to do, the expectation of us hosting it.”
Two very different versions of the same event.
I am so grateful to the Victorian Ombudsman and her incredible team for ensuring the truth is now out there.
Their hard work has exposed the answers that we were denied.
As I wrote at the time, we were not expected to find out any of this, but fortunately through the work of The Terrier, whistleblowers, Freedom of Information and all of those who spoke to the Ombudsman’s investigation team, the truth is now surfacing.
More to come.
Ombudsman reveals huge drinks bill hidden behind “room hire”
The ‘room hire’ was not room hire at all, but in fact an unofficial thankyou party for a council staff member, organised by former tourism head David McMahon and paid for on his credit card.
The invoice was a foil to hide a drinks bill of $538.50 that included three bottles of red wine for a total cost of $325. (Food made up the total bill of $736.50).
According to the Ombudsman’s report, City Growth Manager Andrew Paton and Director Corporate Strategies Peter Utri both attended this function and offered to pay their share as they did not consider it work related.
Mr McMahon had a different view: ” I can’t speak for them, but I went there under the full knowledge that this was a work ‘thank you’ function. I don’t remember anyone having a discussion …”
Mr McMahon’s lawyer had a similar view and told the Ombudsman’s investigation:
“[David McMahon] was asked to arrange a thank you dinner by his employer for a staff member. There was never any discussion about payment. His employer attended the dinner. There was no offer to pay or contribute to the bill.”
The second “room hire”, as it turns out, was also a euphemism for a huge drinks bill.
I will post that in a moment. (My head is swooning at the lies.)
Ombudsman’s report into WCC credit cards exposes largesse
Carol Altmann – The Terrier
JUST IN: The Victorian Ombudsman’s long-awaited report into credit card use and misuse at Warrnambool City Council has just hit the decks.
The bottom line to this 10-month Ombudsman’s investigation is that Warrnambool ratepayers can now take much greater comfort in knowing that every cent spent on a WCC credit card will come under much greater internal scrutiny.
As we know, this whole scandal revolved around not only blatant and unauthorised largesse by one individual in former tourism manager David McMahon, but the spending by several others that was permissible under the council’s then policies and rules.
This is part of the Ombudsman Deborah Glass’s eloquent summary:
“The conclusion of this investigation is that while there is evidence of lax practices by staff and poor judgment by some in senior management, credit card misuse was not widespread.
“Serious misuse was limited to one individual, although the level of abuse was greater than had been exposed or admitted to, in some instances also suggested a deliberate intention to deceive.
“The people of Warrnambool do not expect their hard-earned payment of rates to be funding espresso martinis, travel to Melbourne coinciding with football games, spa resort massages for family members, or hundreds of dollars in alcoholic beverages, described on the invoice as ‘Room Hire’.
‘But while the individual no longer works for the Council and has repaid the money, the damage has been done.
‘Senior management could and should have done more at the time the misuse was first exposed in 2018.
‘Although this inaction was neither dishonest nor systemic, it gave raise to the impression of a cover-up.
‘The then CEO told us he ‘would have dealt with it differently had the full picture been known at the time – an important, indeed painful lesson that integrity rules exist for a reason.
‘The impression of large numbers of snouts in the public trough was also exacerbated by overly generous hospitality policies.
‘It was understandable that Council should wish to support local traders affected by the city centre construction works. But to an observer, the holding of meetings by Council officers in local cafes and restaurants was no different from the staff going out for lunches and coffees on the public purse.
‘Combined with lax adherence to processes and insufficient oversight by some, it is not surprising these public displays of eating and drinking gave rise to the impression they apparently did.
‘Policies and guidance have since been tightened, external audits and reviews are being implemented and fewer credit cards are now in use’.”
The report goes on to make three recommendations:
the council consider referring Mr McMahon’s actions to the police;
the council reconsider the number of credit cards in use and the rationale of the issuing of the cards. (There were up to 93 cards in use in 2018-19, it’s now down to around 70.) and;
Implement the recommendations of the two audit reports and report back to the Ombudsman within six months.
There are a number of interesting revelations that start to answer some long-standing questions, including:
Mr McMahon repaid $5666.84 on Nov 5 and was given a first and final warning from then CEO Bruce Anson.
Mr McMahon also handed in his credit card. On 20 December, however, City Growth Manager (and Mr McMahon’s boss) approved Mr McMahon’s request to have his credit card back.
After a series of exclusive stories published by The Terrier last July, Mr McMahon met with the new CEO Peter Schneider and admitted further unauthorised transactions. He repaid another $3071.73 and handed in his resignation. Mr Schneider referred the matter to IBAC;
The curious receipt for “room hire” at the Lady Bay hotel on 10 October 2018 that cost ratepayers $736.50 – was an unofficial thankyou dinner for a colleague attended by Andrew Paton, Peter Utri, David McMahon and others.
Drinks at the infamous Cape Schanck tourism conference in July 2018 – the knees-up that started this whole investigation – included 34 espresso martinis at $18 each and a single shot of Sullivan’s Cove American cask whiskey for $38.
No wonder this whole saga has left ratepayers – and the council – with a massive headache.
More to come.
WRC to WCC: Hi Bruce, can you help us out of a bind?
Former W’bool City Council CEO Bruce Anson and former W’bool Racing Club CEO Peter Downs. (Original images via WCC and Racing.com)
Carol Altmann – The Terrier
It’s fascinating to see the conversations that go on behind the scenes between the powerful, like an exchange between the former CEO of the Warrnambool City Council, Bruce Anson, and the former CEO of the Warrnambool Racing Club, Peter Downs.
It is a brief exchange – and released only through Freedom of Information of course – but it says so much.
It reveals that Mr Downs met with Mr Anson on Thursday 8 February 2018 with a problem.
The problem was that racehorse training along a section of Port Fairy’s East Beach was no longer possible because, wait for it, those pesky Hooded Plovers had turned up and made it “unworkable” for the racehorses.
But Mr Downs had an idea, which he put to Mr Anson in writing after their catch up: what about giving permission for 50 racehorses to use Lady Bay from Monday 12 February, from dawn until 8am?
Under the council rules, racehorse training at Lady Bay did not normally start until 1 March.
There is a very good reason for this, as Mr Downs acknowledges: “We understand that there are other beach users using this area at this season of the year”.
(That season of the year is called summer and funnily enough there are loads of “beach users” who like to use Warrnambool’s main beach in summer.)
Not only did Mr Downs think having 50 racehorses training on Lady Bay in summer was a great idea, he also hoped the council could make it happen with just four days’ turnaround from his meeting with Mr Anson.
How? Well, “a circular resolution via email” to councillors.
Excuse me?
No meeting of councillors? No discussion with the public? Not even a notice in the Saturday newspaper?
Was Mr Downs seriously suggesting the council could change the rules by flicking an email around to councillors for a “yes” or a “no”?
You would expect Mr Anson, as CEO, to have clutched his belly, laughed out loud and spluttered “Don’t be so bloody ridiculous Peter!”
But no.
Mr Anson got straight on to it, to see if it could be done.
Within 24 hours Mr Anson had replied to Mr Downs, having done something that the council should have done when the WRC also wanted to access Levy’s Beach for racehorse training – he checked the council laws.
Lo and behold, it is illegal under local laws to bend the rules around racehorse training at Lady Bay without consulting the public.
Who would have thought? Fancy not being able to change a local law via Snapchat or WhatsApp, how inconvenient.
“Sorry I cannot assist in this instance,” Mr Anson wrote in his reply to Mr Downs via his ipad.
A sunset clause on the whole mess lapsed on 30 November last year, so each councillor will once again have to decide where they stand on the issue which continues to divide the community.
The first council meeting of the year is next Monday…and the election is in October.
Credit card rort: Foxy the fact checker goes digging
Carol Altmann – The Terrier
Foxy the fact checker has barged into the office, panting and sweating, with some freshly baked facts about the credit card spending of former W’bool City Council tourism head David McMahon.
Righto, Foxy, do your thing:
Fact: Mr McMahon repaid a total of $5666.85 to the WCC last year, not around $4000 as I thought from adding up the “missing” receipts released through Freedom of Information.
Fact: This is what has been repaid, not what should have been repaid. That figure is still being worked out.
Fact: This $5666.85 was repaid on Monday 5 November 2018, just six days after I lodged my FOI application with the council.
These two facts, which were released via Freedom of Information, took 5.5 weeks and $54 in fees to find out.
The one-page document from the WCC general ledger showing Mr McMahon’s repayment of $5666.84 on 5 November 2018.
What other facts do you have Foxy? Cut loose!
Fact: Mr McMahon repaid the $5666.85 just a few days after a meeting with then-CEO Bruce Anson.
Fact: The Audit and Risk Committee met in November last year, the month of the repayment, but was told nothing.
Fact: Audit and Risk Committee meetings are attended by the council CEO (at that time Bruce Anson), the Director of Corporate Strategies, Peter Utri, the Manager of Financial Services, David Harrington, the Manager of Governance and Risk, Anne-Maree Neal, and an internal auditor.
Fact: On 20 November last year, after the $5666.85 repayment, the council published a six-month report into strategic risks, the chance of them happening, the impact and how to stop them. The $5666.85 didn’t rate a mention.
Fact: The credit card abuse was not reported to IBAC (Independent Broad-Based Anti-Corruption Commission) under mandatory reporting.
Fact: Mr McMahon kept his job…and his corporate credit card.
What Foxy can’t reveal is exactly what the $5666.84 was spent on, because if you are of a certain mind, it’s easy to hide such spending, especially if you know that nobody is looking too closely.
Dinner receipts are easy to disguise, like that for a 10-course tasting menu at a local restaurant under the guise of Fun4Kids. Generic image.
Fact: Unauthorised spending was inserted into invoices, wrapped up into “room hire”, covered up in “catering”, or buried under those two little words, “council business”.
Fact: One of the missing receipts is for a 10-course, tasting menu with matching wines that lasted four hours in a local restaurant that Mr McMahon enjoyed with a Fun4Kids supplier.
Fact: Foxy found another little receipt for $78 worth of car parking in Melbourne on Friday 12 October 2018.
This receipt coincided with the 125th birthday celebrations of St Patrick’s College Ballarat, held at the MCG, which Mr McMahon attended as (now former) secretary of the St Pat’s old boys.
Did we pay for the parking? Probably.
Is that it Foxy? You must be truly fact after uncovering all of those facts.
No? One more? Okay, spit it out:
Fact: there was a third council person at the almost $700 dinner and booze up at the Myrtle Bar and Kitchen on 18 July last year, that included five bottles of shiraz.
It was Mr McMahon.
His name, unlike Cr Sue Cassidy’s, was missing from the receipt submitted to council by City Growth manager Andrew Paton.
Well fancy that, Foxy, fancy that.
Barry the Boolshite Detector has just passed me a note:
“Bring on the Ombudsman’s inquiry, signed Barry.”
[Note: the $1476 dinner at Pippie’s was a Sister-City function for people from Miura, Japan. Money well spent? I don’t know. Cr Mike Neoh was part of that event, but says he paid $83 toward the final bill that more than covered his share. He doesn’t drink. Cr Neoh bypassed the usual slog and outlined all of this in an email, two hours after I asked him the questions last Thursday. If only every other question to council was answered as quickly and directly.]
Carol Altmann – The Terrier
Carol Altmann – The Terrier
