ICAC hears from Charles and Anita Perrottet after dramatic evidence from ex-building commissioner

A brother of former NSW premier Dominic Perrottet has told a corruption inquiry he knew fugitive property developer Jean Nassif wanted to build influence inside the Liberal Party.

Charles Perrottet told the NSW Independent Commission Against Corruption he tried to keep the developer onside for his own reasons.

He said Mr Nassif often rang him directly to complain about his projects and figures including former minister David Elliott.

“I wanted to appease him. I humoured him at times because I had an ulterior motive to seek some information from him in regard to allegations that had been around,” Charles Perrottet said in evidence on Friday.

He also told the inquiry he helped chase unpaid Beckington invoices and gave Mr Nassif updates about activity inside the Liberal Party, while insisting “what I said to Jean Nassif was very different to my actions in the party”.

The ICAC is investigating whether fugitive developer Mr Nassif made illegal donations to Liberal Party figures in return for help advancing his interests, including efforts to remove former building commissioner David Chandler from office and damage the political career of former minister David Elliott.

Dominic Perrottet, Mr Elliott and Mr Chandler are not accused of any wrongdoing.

Charles Perrottet’s wife Alice earlier on Friday spend a second day in the witness box at the ICAC.

She was pressed over nearly $661,000 paid into her company, disputed travel claims and a detailed email about Mr Nassif and Toplace as an ICAC corruption inquiry intensifies.

Anita Perrottet returned to the witness box on Friday, while her husband Charles Perrottet began his evidence late in the day and will resume on Monday.

Ms Perrottet first gave evidence on Wednesday when she was questioned about payments to her company, her business dealings and what she knew of her husband’s political work.

A major focus was the money paid into Ms Perrottet’s company, Macquarie Consulting, from Beckington and JPG Advisory.

Counsel assisting Peggy Dwyer SC told the inquiry the total amount received over about two and a half years was roughly $661,000, despite Ms Perrottet maintaining there was no written work product because her advice was verbal.

“That’s an enormous amount of money to be paid for circumstances where you cannot produce a scrap of evidence in relation to work done,” Ms Dwyer told her.