NSW Finance Minister Damien Tudehope resigns over Transurban shares scandal

Senior NSW Minister Damien Tudehope has resigned after saying he unknowingly had shares in Transurban, a company that owns the majority of the state’s toll roads.

The NSW Minister for Finance and Industrial Relations made the announcement on Friday, saying the shares are part of his family’s diversified pension fund, set up in 2014 and managed by financial advisors.

The latest blow to the state government comes when NSW Liberal MLC Peter Poulos quit earlier as Parliamentary Secretary on Friday after admitting to broadcasting X-rated pictures of Liberal MP Robyn Preston.

Senior NSW Minister Damien Tudehope has resigned after saying he unknowingly had shares in Transurban, a company that owns the majority of the state’s toll roads.

Prime Minister Dominic Perrottet has been hit by two scandals in the space of two days, just six weeks before the NSW general election in March

NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet said he was briefed on the disclosure on Thursday and is expected to receive advice from the Department of Premiers and Cabinet legal teams on Friday afternoon for further review.

“As soon as I receive it, I will read it and think about it,” Mr Perrottet said.

However, he supported Mr Tudehope as an “incredibly honest and upright man”.

“But there are ministerial responsibilities. I’m going to take that advice and read it,” said Perrottet.

As Treasury Secretary, Mr Tudehope would have engaged in discussions about relieving tolls on roads owned by the road operator. In NSW, Transurban owns and operates some or all of nine toll roads including the M2, M4, Lane Cove Tunnel and WestConnex.

“If I had known that I held Transurban shares, I would have disclosed my interest at the time,” he told journalists on Friday.

“I didn’t know I was building these stocks until it was brought to my attention through correspondence I received from a journalist.”

On Friday, The Daily Telegraph reported that Mr Tudehope’s family fund was worth more than $65,000, with shares more than doubling since they were bought for $29,099 in 2014.

The finance minister confirmed that he would now sell the shares and donate the profits to charity.

Mr. Tudehope has repeatedly claimed that he was unaware of the shares until brought to his attention by a journalist and stated that his shareholdings were not a factor in policy decisions.

“There are obviously political issues surrounding Transurban; If I had known that my family fund had an interest in Transurban, I would have disclosed it and not participated,” he said.

“It would not have had an impact on Transurban in terms of toll relief… It would not have had an impact on their stock price and I say that categorically.”

Mr Tudehope confirmed that Mr Perrottet had been made aware of the minister’s lack of disclosure and would now decide whether this breached the minister’s code of conduct.

“That is up to the Prime Minister; I wrote to the Prime Minister. He will seek advice on non-disclosure,” he said.

“Had I known that I owned shares, I would not have engaged in discussions about Transurban.

“I don’t think the question of an apology arises.”

Under the code, ministers may only hold shares in any company or company, public or private, if they can demonstrate that it is unlikely that “a conflict of interest, or a potential conflict of interest, will arise”.

Shares in bond funds must be “widely diversified”. A minister must have “no influence on certain investment decisions of the fund”.

Mr Poulos came under widespread pressure to resign after it was revealed he shared an email that included explicit photos of Robyn Preston modeling as a 1980s Penthouse pet.

The photos were subsequently shared with the media as she ran for pre-selection at Hawkesbury’s headquarters in north-west Sydney.

While Ms Preston would later win the seat, at the time she was a councilor on Hills Shire Council while Mr Poulos worked as a political staffer.

Ms Preston confirmed there was no bad blood between her and Mr Poulos, who she described as a “great pal”.

“Peter called me and apologized personally and he was very remorseful,” she said.

“We support each other on our path in politics and friendship.”

Source: | This article originally belongs to Dailymail.co.uk