Young Liberal power brokers created 'shit sheet' on NSW minister accusing him of extramarital affair

A group of young conservative power brokers in the New South Wales Liberal party under investigation by the corruption watchdog created a 'shit sheet' on a minister from a rival faction, claiming he had an extramarital affair, an inquiry has heard.

The Independent Commission Against Corruption (Icac) held its third day of hearings as part of Operation Rosny into allegations of corruption against people associated with the NSW Liberal party on Wednesday. The inquiry is investigating whether a group known as the Reformers allegedly solicited or accepted illegal donations to recruit or renew members to the party – a practice known as 'branch stacking'. The group wanted more conservative policies on same-sex marriage, abortion and euthanasia.

Former Liberal staffer and associate of the Reformers, Dylan Whitelaw, finished giving evidence to the inquiry on Wednesday. The hearing focused on a document on former NSW Liberal minister David Elliott, shared between the Reformers, which was allegedly titled 'David Elliott shit sheet'. The document contains a section alleging Elliott had an affair, which Elliott vehemently denies. Whitelaw accepted under cross-examination from Elliott's lawyer that no affair had taken place.

The inquiry is also investigating allegations that members of the Reformers took donations from Jean Nassif, a fugitive property developer, in exchange for the pursuit of outcomes including damage to Elliott's career and the removal of the-then building commissioner, David Chandler. Whitelaw told the commission the Reformers had a 'large distaste' for Elliott, part of the centre-right faction. He said he initially believed the document was part of 'standard factional warfare' but later came to believe it was prepared at Nassif's instruction.

Whitelaw was also questioned about payments the federal opposition leader, Angus Taylor, purportedly agreed to make to the Reformers. He acknowledged that a contract between Catholic Schools NSW and lobbying firm Beckington, controlled by Reformers members, was an agreement where minimal work would be conducted in exchange for money paid for the Reformers' work.

Additionally, Whitelaw gave evidence about an incident where the then-planning minister's chief of staff, Chris Spence, claimed to have a potentially damaging video of building commissioner Chandler, with plans to give it to then-fair trading minister Eleni Petinos to use in a budget estimates hearing. Whitelaw said he never saw the video, which allegedly imputed that Chandler was racist. He recalled Spence later complaining that Petinos 'fucked it up', indicating the plan did not come to fruition.