Kellie Sloane Faces Challenges Due to ICAC Claims

The topic is about corruption.

It happened on Monday, August 3, 2026, at 6:50 am.

Another event occurred on Monday, August 3, 2026, at 11:47 am.

Kellie Sloane is under pressure from the ICAC's investigation, which involves one of her senior colleagues.

NSW Opposition Leader Kellie Sloane was not involved in the alleged corruption.

In 2021, a property developer was allegedly giving money to some Liberal party members, but Ms Sloane was working on a different project.

Her previous work was very wholesome.

In 2022, she left her job to run for a seat in the Liberal party, which she won in 2023.

Kellie Sloane says the allegations happened before she was in politics.

Ms Sloane reminds people that the allegations are from before her time in politics.

Last week, she found the evidence to be very uncomfortable, but she was focused on other things.

However, by Friday, two of her ministers were involved in the saga.

This week, the ICAC will hear from one of her senior colleagues, making things harder for her.

Tudehope will give evidence.

The ICAC hearings started on Monday and will last for eight weeks, which could change the NSW Liberal party.

Former shadow attorney-general Damien Tudehope will give evidence on Monday.

He is not accused of doing anything wrong but stepped down from his role last month.

Mr Tudehope knows some members of the Reformers, a subgroup of the Liberal party, which is part of the investigation.

Damien Tudehope will give evidence on Monday and has not been accused of wrongdoing.

The ICAC was told that Mr Tudehope hosted a barbecue for the Reformers in 2018 to recruit like-minded Liberals.

During the event, a former colleague of Mr Tudehope's, Michael O'Hara, met the group.

Mr O'Hara later decided to support the Reformers financially, even though he was not allowed to.

Damien Tudehope had a connection with the Reformers, a right-wing subgroup of the Liberal party.

On Monday, Mr Tudehope will be asked if he knew about the alleged payments.

These questions are to find facts, not to make allegations, but Mr Tudehope's association with the Reformers could make for an uncomfortable day.

Ms Sloane thinks Mr Tudehope is a man of integrity and would welcome him back to her team when the time is right.

How quickly he returns to the frontbench depends on his performance on Monday.

Catching curveballs is not easy.

While Ms Sloane may have hoped Mr Tudehope's resignation would reduce controversy, she was not prepared for the evidence about shadow industry minister Eleni Petinos.

Ms Petinos is not accused of wrongdoing, but the ICAC is investigating a phone call made by fugitive property developer Jean Nassif.

Eleni Petinos is not accused of wrongdoing.

During the 2021 call, Nassif boasted that he could get rid of building commissioner David Chandler because one of his 'girls' would become the relevant minister.

Two months later, Ms Petinos was appointed fair trading minister.

By mid-2022, Mr Chandler had left his position after a code of conduct investigation requested by Ms Petinos's office.

However, Counsel Assisting Peggy Dwyer was cautious about linking Nassif's conversation to Mr Chandler's departure.

Peggy Dwyer SC is the counsel assisting the ICAC for Operation Rosny.

Dr Dwyer suggested that Nassif's bragging might have been 'wishful thinking' that happened to come true.

Ms Sloane emphasized that Ms Petinos was 'not named as a subject of interest'.

She said the inquiry should be allowed to run its course and noted that Ms Petinos was on maternity leave.

It means Ms Petinos will not attend parliament when it resumes this week.

Kellie Sloane says Ms Petinos has not been named 'as a subject of interest'.

The opposition leader also had to defend shadow planning minister Chris Rath after reports that he might have helped one of the Reformers avoid a summons.

He reportedly told someone about the location of a process server who was hired to serve the summons.

Ms Sloane said she spoke to Mr Rath and expressed her disappointment.

Kellie Sloane says she spoke to Chris Rath to express her disappointment.

Chris Rath acknowledged his mistake, apologized, and accepted that he should not have shared confidential information.

However, Ms Sloane noted that her minister was not under ICAC investigation and had not been asked to give evidence.

Even so, for the third time in a week, she had to answer questions about her colleagues' conduct.

Just seven months before the election, the timing could not be worse.

Labor is being careful not to show too much excitement.

Throughout August and September, the ICAC will likely produce many damaging headlines about alleged corruption involving Liberal party figures.

On one hand, this is a gift to the Labor government, which seems content to watch it all unfold.

Even before the inquiry began, Ms Sloane and her team were facing a difficult battle to win the government.

A recent poll showed voter support for the Coalition at just 23 percent.

However, Labor was not the main beneficiary, with the same poll showing support for One Nation had surged to 25 percent.

Polling suggests support for One Nation has increased.

The eight weeks of public hearings are unlikely to improve the Coalition's standing with voters.

Premier Chris Minns has mostly resisted making political gains from his opponents' situation.

On Sunday, he said the allegations at ICAC risked casting all politicians in a bad light, at a time when voter frustration with major parties was rising.

Chris Minns says the allegations at ICAC risked casting all politicians in a bad light.

One Nation's vote has increased, and they are not involved in the ICAC investigation.

Chris Minns expressed concern that people might say, 'I've seen Labor at ICAC and I've seen the Liberal Party at ICAC, I'm going to vote for a third party this time.'

The ICAC is supposed to give voters confidence that public institutions and politicians are honest and transparent.

It would be ironic if, after all these inquiries, voters decided they could no longer trust them at all.

More news from NSW is available.

The topic is about courts.

The topic is about the State of Origin.

The topic is about children.

See more ABC coverage in your search results.