Wednesday, 13 August 2025

Casey City Council

Bev McARTHUR (Western Victoria) (18:43): (1829) My adjournment matter is for the Attorney-General, and the action I seek is that she acts on the Casey Residents and Ratepayers Association’s written requests to her in correspondence dated 24 June 2025. It has been said before, and I will say it again: justice delayed is justice denied. It has been nearly two years since IBAC released its report into Operation Sandon, which was conducted over half a decade. It detailed findings regarding allegations of serious, corrupt conduct in relation to planning and property development decisions at Casey council. But if you look at IBAC’s website today, you will find that there is no report available, there are no documents and there is no further information.

Not a single charge has been laid by the Office of Public Prosecutions against any of the individuals investigated by IBAC, despite the volume and severity of the allegations made against them. Sandon sullied the reputations of many individuals, who deserve to know whether they will be charged or not. It led to Casey’s late former mayor Amanda Stapleton, someone who was loved and respected by her city, tragically taking her own life, having received little to no support from IBAC. It was used as an excuse by Labor-appointed administrators to issue a protocol in May last year that handed more powers to council staff and limits the involvement of innocent, democratically elected councillors in planning matters. It saw the community lose trust in their elected officials at the time, and now they are losing confidence in Victoria’s integrity and oversight bodies.

Late last month the Casey Residents and Ratepayers Association, led by Brian Oates and Anthony Tassone, wrote to the state’s Attorney-General expressing their concern that the Office of Public Prosecutions’ lack of visible progress undermines the integrity of our justice system. I join them in calling for the following sensible actions: (1) seek an urgent briefing from the Director of Public Prosecutions regarding the status of any matters arising from Operation Sandon, (2) inform the public, to the extent permissible, of whether referrals from IBAC are being actively pursued and (3) provide an update on the implementation of the government’s response to the IBAC recommendations to ensure transparency and prioritisation of public confidence in government integrity. These are not beyond the remit of the Attorney, and I plead with her to do the right thing by Victorians, who look to her to uphold law and order in this state.