Sean Nicholls Sydney Morning Herald State Political Editor
June 6, 2013 - 4:31PM
Greg Pearce is being investigated over donations he made to the Liberal Party. Photo: Rob Homer
NSW finance minister Greg Pearce has failed to disclose ownership of a central Sydney apartment and a block of land on the north coast despite rules stating he must declare property interests to parliament.
And in revelations that will place more pressure on the besieged minister, there are questions about whether Mr Pearce breached electoral funding laws by donating thousands of dollars to the Liberal Party while controlling a property development company. The NSW Liberal Party is investigating the matter.
Mr Pearce was already under pressure over whether he rorted travel expenses on a trip to Canberra a day after he was accused of being drunk in the NSW parliament.
Amid calls for him to resign from cabinet by the Opposition, Premier Barry O'Farrell has ordered an inquiry by his department head, Chris Eccles, into whether Mr Pearce breached ministerial travel guidelines.
Now, an investigation by Fairfax Media has revealed a company controlled by Mr Pearce, Oakhill Moss Vale Pty Ltd, is joint owner of an apartment in the Victoria Towers development in Castlereagh Street.
Property records show the apartment is jointly owned by Oakhill Moss Vale and Mr Pearce's wife, Shauna Jarratt. Mr Pearce and Ms Jarratt live in the flat.
But while Mr Pearce has disclosed to parliament his interest in Oakhill Moss Vale, from which he receives dividends, he has never declared his interest in the apartment.
As finance minister Mr Pearce is currently deciding whether to sell potentially hundreds of millions of dollars worth of government property across Sydney. It is unclear whether some of these sales could impact on the value of the apartment.
Another company controlled by Mr Pearce, Summer School Management Pty Ltd, owns a block of land at Buckra Bendilli, near Bowraville, on the NSW north coast.
In his most recent declaration to parliament, Mr Pearce described the principal business of Summer School Management as "property". However in his 2010 declaration he described its primary business as "property development".
The disclosure raises questions about whether Mr Pearce breached election funding laws up to 13 times between July 2010 and June 2011 by donating more than $10,000 to the NSW Liberal Party.
Under NSW laws, property developers and their "close associates" - including major shareholders and directors - have been prohibited from making political donations since 2009.
Mr Pearce was a director of Summer School Management until April 2011, shortly after he was sworn in as finance minister following the state election. He remains the major shareholder with another of his companies, Malueta Pty Ltd.
A spokeswoman for Mr Pearce said the properties were acquired prior to Mr Pearce entering parliament.
"Investments of private family companies are not required to be disclosed under the rules," she said.
"A shareholding or directorship does not constitute 'interest' in land – this is a matter of legal definition."
She said the companies were "remnants from the minister's investments prior to entering Parliament."
Despite Mr Pearce's declaration that he is receiving dividends from the companies, the spokesman said they "have not conducted any activity since he was a Minister and do not have any interests in any public companies".
She also denied Mr Pearce had breached election funding rules with his donations to the Liberal Party.
"The company is not a 'property developer' as defined by Section 96GB of the Election Funding, Expenditure and Disclosures Act 1981 because it is not a 'corporation engaged in a business that regularly involves the making of relevant planning applications'," she said.
"The company is dormant and as disclosed in the returns, operates only as a property owner of a residual asset."
However, the state director of the NSW Liberals, Mark Neeham, said the party would "look into" the donations.
