Londonderry MP Bart Bassett appeared in the ICAC witness box on Tuesday, September 2, claiming he had no knowledge of the $18,000 donated by Buildev to his election campaign in 2010.
“I can’t exactly answer that,” Mr Bassett told counsel, when asked how his 2011 election campaign was funded, saying he was kept at “arms length”.
“I have no knowledge of that money,” he said.
When asked by counsel why he hadn’t looked pending the ICAC inquiry, Mr Bassett said that it was his understanding he shouldn’t be talking to anybody about matters before ICAC.
Mr Bassett claimed he contributed $5000 to his own campaign. That money didn’t appear to be declared on his disclosures to the Electoral Funding Authority.
“I don’t recall I checked this,” he said of the electoral funding declaration. “I don’t know about what money came into the campaign.”
Mr Bassett agreed that “on the face of it” he should have checked the electoral funding declaration, but was kept at arms length.
Mr Bassett said donations could have been sent to the Liberal head office, which meant they would not be declared by him or his team.
“I had a clear policy of not getting involved in donations,” he said.
Mr Bassett said ICAC should be speaking to Hawkesbury Mayor Kim Ford, who was his campaign manager at the time.
Mr Bassett took to the stand again on September 3.