NEWCASTLE Labor MP Tim Crakanthorp has rejected criticisms he sat on a leaked cabinet minute that was ‘‘political dynamite’’ about the government’s plans to truncate the city’s rail line, as some of his constituents fought and failed to save the heavy rail services.
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Giving evidence to a parliamentary inquiry on Friday afternoon, Mr Crakanthorp called for a ‘‘proper and urgent investigation’’ into how the highly confidential document was leaked and, as he claims, ended up in former Liberal MP Tim Owen’s office.
Mr Crakanthorp insisted it was the government that should have to explain what had occurred with the document, not him, as well as answer questions about what influence developers had on the government’s decision to run light rail down Hunter Street instead of the heavy rail corridor.
‘‘It does not require one to be Einstein to work out why many in Newcastle and in the government have been so desperate to try and divert attention away from the document,’’ Mr Crakanthorp told the inquiry into city planning decisions.
But the Labor MP came under fire over why he had not alerted either the public or the Independent Commission Against Corruption sooner to the cabinet minute, after one of his staff is said to have found it in a filing cabinet in early December.
The document, marked ‘‘copy 71’’, contains advice from Transport for NSW that the light rail should run down the heavy rail corridor rather than Hunter Street.
The government opted for a ‘‘hybrid’’ route that runs down the corridor and Hunter Street, opens up land for development and will cost $100 million more.
‘‘The people of Newcastle were struggling to keep the rail line open, including going to court and challenging the government, and you had this key document that demolishes the government’s case, yet you kept it from your own constituents for the better part of two and a half months,’’ Greens MP and inquiry deputy chairman David Shoebridge said.
‘‘How could you not have...provided this document to the public before the rail line was shut on Boxing Day? You just sat there and watched it get shut?’’
Mr Crakanthorp replied: ‘‘I reject that...I’ve been the strongest advocate for keeping the rail line open...I reject the premise of your question’’.
He said he had referred the ‘‘sensitive’’ document to the then office of then opposition leader John Robertson soon after it was discovered, and referred it to ICAC on the day it was made public last week.
‘‘What more can I possibly do?’’ Mr Crakanthorp said.
‘‘A great deal more than warm it with your backside for two and a half months while the rail line is shut down,’’ Mr Shoebridge replied.
Liberal MP Catherine Cusack also queried why Mr Crakanthorp waited to report it to ICAC.
‘‘I referred that document to ICAC when it became a public document,’’ he replied.
Giving evidence on Monday, Mr Owen said he ‘‘cannot recall’’ ever seeing the document and that he thought his staff were going to shred all records left in his office when he resigned mid last year amid ICAC’s investigation into developer donations to his 2011 campaign.
Mr Crakanthorp said the inquiry should believe him rather than Mr Owen because he was certain where the document had been found.
But then the Labor MP had his own moment of failing to recall when asked who in Mr Robertson’s office he passed it on to and when, and when exactly he first read it after his staffer found it.
‘‘This whole line of inquiry can be cleared up simply by the government revealing the identity of [cabinet minute recipient] number 71,’’ Mr Crakanthorp said.
