THE ACT Integrity Commission will next week hold its first public examinations since its formation in December, 2019.

However, while the media may register to attend, the public will be limited to watching the live streaming of proceedings via integrity.act.gov.au.

Integrity Commissioner Michael Adams will look at “Operation Kingfisher”, an investigation into whether public officials within the ACT Education Directorate failed to exercise their official functions honestly and/or impartially when making recommendations and decisions regarding the Campbell Primary School Modernisation Project between 2019 and 2020.

Witnesses will be called on August 10-11 with later dates under consideration.

‘The decision to hold an examination in public requires the careful consideration of several factors before I can determine it is in the public interest to do so,” said Commissioner Adams.

“Following consideration of those factors, and the submissions provided by the proposed witnesses, I have determined that holding these examinations is in the public interest and that the public examination can be held without unreasonably infringing a person’s human rights.

“The seriousness of the allegations in Operation Kingfisher must be noted as the investigation relates to concerns that the system for dealing with procurement in the territory has been undermined by inappropriate conduct at senior levels. It is an
important part of the role of the commission to investigate and expose these issues.”

The commissioner said that being called as a witness to provide evidence to an examination is not indicative that an adverse finding will be made by the commission against that person. Rather, it means that the person has been called as a witness as they have information relevant to the commission’s investigation.