A FORMER Queensland Racing director claims union boss and Labor powerbroker Bill Ludwig acted as the conduit between racing's governing body and the Beattie and Bligh governments.
MICHAEL McKENNA reports in THE AUSTRALIAN that lawyer Bill Andrews, in a sworn statement to the commission of inquiry into the former QR board, has fuelled speculation about Mr Ludwig's sway over the body and the Labor state governments while he was a director.
Mr Andrews, a QR director from 2005 to 2009, has also told the inquiry he unsuccessfully pushed for legal advice to pursue gaming giant UNiTAB over its practice of deducting agency costs of about $30 million a year from the money it owed QR for the right to wager on races in the state.
In his submission, Mr Andrews, who also served alongside Mr Ludwig on the board of Queensland Race Product Co, which negotiated the deal with UNiTAB, said legal advice had been given that the gambling giant was unlawfully deducting the agency costs and depriving the local industry of revenues it was owed.
Mr Andrews said that other board members believed that the cost of seeking legal advice from senior counsel over the matter was not warranted.
But Mr Andrews said while he raised concerns that the board may be "in breach of our duties as directors" in not fully investigating the issue, he did not believe there was any further discussion at later board meetings before he retired in 2009.
"I cannot now recall if there was any further discussion regarding the issue," he said in his statement.
The UNiTAB deal was included in the terms of reference for the inquiry, chaired by former Court of Appeals judge Margaret White.
The inquiry, which will hold public hearings this month, was called after revelations that almost all of the building contracts for a $110m upgrade of racecourses were awarded to the same two companies, without public tender.
The inquiry, ordered by the Newman government, is also probing the pre-election approval of new contracts for the executives involved in the capital works, which delivered them 30 per cent pay rises and $1.85m in payouts when they jointly resigned two days after the election.
In response to questions about "oversight" of the board by the government, Mr Andrews said he had had no dealings with any minister or departmental head.
"To my knowledge the conduit from QR to the minister was Mr Bill Ludwig," he said.
In his submission, Mr Ludwig, national president of the Australian Workers Union, said he did discuss racing issues "on occasions" with government ministers and sometimes accompanied chairman Bob Bentley "to support him" in briefings to government.
STORY SOURCE: THE AUSTRALIAN - NEWS LIMITED.
