Anthony SegaertUpdated June 17, 2026 — 10:02am,first published June 17, 2026 — 9:33am10.02amConnolly grilled over niece’s recruitmentBy Moses is grilling Connolly about the hiring of her niece at the council.Connolly completed a conflict of interest disclosure when her niece was hired that she had “nil involvement in recruitment, interview, evaluation, approval to appoint”.“You did have involvement ... This certification in this document was false and you knew it to be false when you signed it. Do you accept that?”“No, I don’t.” The conflict of interest disclosure filled out by Connolly when her niece was employed by the council.ICAC9.51amHearing beginsBy Day 24 of the hearing has commenced, and Moses, on behalf of the council, is due to begin giving evidence.Chief Commissioner John Hatzistergos has flagged the hearing will adjourn at 11am (he has a morning tea to attend).Reminder, you can watch the livestream of the hearing.9.33amFormer federal MP seen at proceedingsBy Spotted at the ICAC yesterday: former Liberal federal MP for the southern Sydney seat of Hughes, Jenny Ware. Ware was seen in the public gallery watching proceedings yesterday and left with Roxanne Thornton, one of the trio being investigated by the commission – who had been sitting in a small meeting room yesterday.The appearance is notable because Ware’s name appeared in evidence during the hearing. Texts show Connolly, Thornton and friend Angela Jones-Blayney all travelled to Canberra to watch Ware’s maiden speech in July 2022, after she won the seat of Hughes.Ware declined to comment when we approached her yesterday.Roxanne Thornton, left, and former federal MP for Hughes Jenny Ware, centre, leave the ICAC offices on Tuesday night.Anthony Segaert9.25amWhat Arthur Moses asked ConnollyBy Yesterday afternoon saw the end of Counsel Assisting Joanna Davidson SC’s questioning of Connolly and the beginning of the cross-examination with Arthur Moses SC, representing the City of Parramatta Council.He began his cross-examination – which will continue today – by asking Connolly if she was familiar with the saying that “hypocrisy is the audacity to preach integrity from a den of corruption”.He put it to her that she had engaged in corrupt conduct by failing to adequately disclose her conflicts of interest in hiring friends Angela Jones-Blayney and Roxanne Thornton. She denied this.In withholding documents and information from councillors, including information about the council’s redundancy payouts of an array of staff, Connolly “made [her]self the judge”, he said.“You’re not willing to accept the proposition that you, ultimately, are accountable to the councillors. They are not accountable to you,” Moses said. “You refuse to understand that, don’t you?”Connolly replied: “Every CEO or general manager is accountable to the council. However, they have to be very careful about the distribution of information, and there is some information in various acts that the councillors are not entitled to receive.”9.10amGood morningBy Welcome to day 24 of the Independent Commission Against Corruption’s public inquiry into the City of Parramatta’s former chief executive Gail Connolly and other staff.Under Operation Navarra, the ICAC is investigating whether council staff members, central among them Connolly, misused public funds by having staff leave through deeds of release (agreements made between staff and the council upon a departure), subverted the council’s recruitment and other processes, disclosed confidential information to third parties, and spied on staff and a councillor.Yesterday, on Connolly’s sixth and possibly penultimate day in the witness box, the former exec agreed with claims put to her by Counsel Assisting Joanna Davidson SC that she had requested senior staff monitor the emails and phone records of independent councillor Kellie Darley.Connolly refuted evidence put forward by the council’s former head of IT that she would regularly request searches of staff emails, via phone or verbally in order to avoid information being located in freedom of information requests.Today, Connolly will be cross-examined by Arthur Moses SC, representing the City of Parramatta, and by legal representatives for Roxanne Thornton, a friend and colleague also under investigation by the ICAC.1 of 1