A scathing report into the O'Farrell government's approval of a floating helipad in Sydney Harbour has identified numerous failures of communication and culture among wide layers of the state's bureaucracy.
The report also says maritime officers in charge for approving the helipad felt "ongoing and growing pressure to complete the process as quickly as possible" because of Deputy Premier Andrew Stoner's interest in it. But the report also said the role of Mr Stoner's office and Department of Trade and Investment was not inappropriate.
Plans for the helipad, which roused the wrath of foreshore councils and prominent local residents when they were revealed late last year, have since been dropped by "mutual consent" of the government and its proponent, Newcastle Helicopters.
“I am deeply disappointed the review found a combination of poor judgment, confusion around responsibilities and a lack of communication between government agencies' contributed to the application being approved," Roads and Ports Minister Duncan Gay said in releasing the report by independent reviewer Peter Loxton.
“This incident has not been one of the Department's finer moments, however the experience has seen new inter-agency protocols implemented to ensure it will not happen again,” Mr Gay said.
On November 20, Mr Stoner announced a floating helicopter pad in Sydney Harbour had been approved and would begin operation in December.
But even as he did so elements of the bureaucracy remained uncertain about whether proper processes had been followed.
James Guest, the owner of Newcastle Helicopters, raised the possibility of a floating heliport on Sydney Harbour in a phone conversation with a senior officer at the Department of Trade and Investment on May 10, 2012.
The officer then arranged for Mr Guest to meet officials in the Department of Roads and Maritime Services. Mr Guest tried to establish with RMS officials whether the helipad would be a "development" and therefore need formal development approval.
On July 23, a lawyer in RMS' maritime branch sent a short email saying "prima facie the answer is in the negative".
This email went on to become the "preliminary legal advice" determining that development approval was not needed.
"The failure to properly test this view at this time reflects quite a closed culture, combined with inadequate communication and poor judgment," Mr Loxton's review, released on Wednesday, said.
The review also says that the chief executive of Roads and Maritime, Peter Duncan, only became aware of the proposal on October 17, demonstrating "serious failures of communication and judgment across the four levels of management at Maritime Division."
And it highlights Mr Stoner's enthusiasm for the project, which he said in November would cement "Sydney's role as a truly international city."
Mr Loxton interviewed RMS officials who said that with "fairly regular mention" from the Department of Trade and Industry of "the Deputy Premier's interest and support, they felt there was ongoing and growing pressure to complete the process as quickly as possible, and to take a positive approach in the assessment process. These concerns were not referred upwards."
The review made 26 recommendations to RMS. Mr Gay said they had all been adopted.
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