Jessica McSweeneyUpdated August 10, 2026 — 10:34am,first published August 10, 2026 — 9:01amWelcome to week threeBy Jessica McSweeneyHello and welcome to the third week of our live coverage of the ICAC’s Operation Rosny.I’m state political reporter Jessica McSweeney, and along with the Herald’s senior writers, I’ll be bringing you all the news as it happens in the hearing room. Today we are expecting to hear from Jeremy Greenwood, a lobbyist and Liberal Party figure who also refused to give evidence before a 2023 parliamentary inquiry looking into illegal donations in the Hills.Before Greenwood begins his evidence, let’s take a look at what we covered last week:Robert Assaf, a founding member of the religious factional group the Reformers, was paid $135,000 a year to work at Catholic Schools NSW, where he would sometimes do Liberal Party factional work during 9-5 hours. Fellow Reformer Jean-Claude Perrottet felt he wasn’t being fairly compensated for his factional work, while Assaf received “$135k for Rob to work for faction”, texts revealed.Intercepted phone calls between Jean-Claude Perrottet and Jean Nassif were played to the commission on Thursday, revealing the property developer had offered $100,000 to support an unnamed Perrottet brother in a preselection. In another call, after Dominic Perrottet became premier in October 2021, Nassif asked Jean-Claude to “take a message to Charlie or to Dom – the building commissioner, we need to stop him”. This was part of his alleged campaign to have David Chandler removed from the role.Jean-Claude Perrottet said Nassif’s claims were “nonsense” and denied knowing about any untoward relationship between Nassif and his brother, Charles.Jean-Claude Perrottet received regular $5000 payments from Beckington, the company set up by Jeremy Greenwood and Christian Ellis, which held Catholic Schools NSW and hotelier Michael O’Hara as clients. Perrottet couldn’t remember what work he did to justify what counsel assisting Juliet Curtin described as “substantial injections of cash”.Liberal shadow attorney-general Damien Tudehope, who has stood down from the frontbench, admitted he leaked a confidential draft report into illegal donations in the Hills to one of the key witnesses who had gone to lengths to avoid the inquiry, Jeremy Greenwood.The live stream of the inquiry can be found here.Latest Posts10.34amKey witness living in UK does want to give evidence, Greenwood saysBy Jessica McSweeneyJeremy Greenwood’s close friend, Christian Ellis, avoided giving evidence in the 2023 parliamentary inquiry and has so far declined to appear before the ICAC – but Greenwood has told the commission that Ellis does want to give evidence. The pair have remained in contact, and Greenwood recently went to visit Ellis in the United Kingdown, where he now lives. Jeremy Greenwood at the ICAC on Monday.ICACCounsel assisting Peggy Dwyer, SC, told the commission in her opening statement that Ellis “has declined to give oral evidence to this public inquiry, during which he would be subject to cross examination”. “He cites family responsibilities and the different time zone. The Commission has proposed methods to accommodate his evidence by video link at acceptable times, and we await a further response from his legal representatives.” Greenwood told the commission on Monday that Ellis had told him he wants to give evidence, but Ellis hasn’t told him of any plans to return to Australia. 10.17amGreenwood no longer a Liberal Party memberBy Kate McClymontJeremy Greenwood, who appears to be very relaxed in the witness box, was just asked if he was a member of the Liberal party.He replied: “They emailed me the other day suspending me, and I wrote back saying I didn’t know I was a member. Please accept my resignation.”10.15amEvidence beginsBy Jessica McSweeneyCounsel assisting Peggy Dwyer, SC, has begun questioning Jeremy Greenwood.We’re starting with some background on Greenwood, who attended school at the Opus Dei-linked Redfield College along with the Perrottet brothers Dominic, Jean-Claude and Charles, although he came to know them more after school, Greenwood said.He worked as a political staffer for federal Liberal MP Philip Ruddock, then Nationals senator Matt Canavan. As a “typical staffer”, he began an arts degree in 2007 but completed it much later, and effectively began his professional life by working in politics after school.He said he remains close friends with other persons of interest to the commission, including Robert Assaf and the Perrottet brothers – Jean-Claude, Charles and former premier Dominic.9.49amWho is Jeremy Greenwood?By Jessica McSweeneyJeremy Greenwood is far from a household name, but as we’ll come to learn in his two days of evidence to the ICAC, the lobbyist is alleged to be involved in two of the main allegations under investigation in the corruption probe.Beckington, the company co-founded by Greenwood and Christian Ellis, is alleged to have concealed what were in truth political donations from Catholic Schools NSW and hotelier Michael O’Hara through what counsel assisting Peggy Dwyer, SC, has called sham arrangements.Jeremy Greenwood arrives at the ICAC with solicitor Bryan Wrench (right).Kate McClymontThe company purported to provide government relations and lobbying services for these clients, but the ICAC is investigating if the money was actually used to fund the work of the Reformers, a religious right-wing factional group working to stack Liberal branches with conservatives.When Beckington split, Greenwood set up a new company taking on board Catholic Schools NSW again as a client, the commission has heard. Greenwood also counted Greyhound Racing NSW as a client.Greenwood is also a person of interest to the inquiry for the second allegation, that he, Ellis, and Charles Perrottet, solicited and/or accepted donations from fugitive property developer Jean Nassif to support their political work and further Nassif’s interests – the removal of then building commissioner David Chandler from office and damage to the political career of MP David Elliott.9.01amThe unlikely branch taken by the ReformersBy Alexandra SmithA group of twenty-something blokes who called themselves the Reformers dared to dream big. The like-minded right-wing Catholics had a plan to take over the Liberal Party one branch at a time to make the conservative movement great again. In July 2018, God delivered.“Great news. God’s granted us a victory,” Reformers co-founder Robert Assaf boasted in a message to a supporter of the sub-faction of the Liberals. “We’ve officially taken the Coffs Harbour branch away from the Left wing.”In another message to wealthy hotelier Michael O’Hara, who a month earlier had given the Reformers $25,000, Assaf said: “It’s the only branch in the whole federal electorate of Cowper, meaning it holds more influence than other branches in the state.”Liberals were stunned when the Coffs Harbour branch featured in the blockbuster Independent Commission Against Corruption’s inquiry into illegal donations and branch stacking. Not so much because the Reformers pulled off a coup, but that the Liberals even existed in Nationals heartland.A senior NSW Liberal quipped: “I didn’t even know we had a Coffs branch”.Senior writer Alexandra Smith has the full story here. 9.00amWatch: Kate McClymont on week two’s biggest momentsBy It was yet another explosive week of ICAC hearings with phone taps, “injections of cash” and secret meetings revealed to the commission.Chief investigative reporter Kate McClymont has broken down the most important moments here:Pinned post from 9.00amWelcome to week threeBy Jessica McSweeneyHello and welcome to the third week of our live coverage of the ICAC’s Operation Rosny.I’m state political reporter Jessica McSweeney, and along with the Herald’s senior writers, I’ll be bringing you all the news as it happens in the hearing room. Today we are expecting to hear from Jeremy Greenwood, a lobbyist and Liberal Party figure who also refused to give evidence before a 2023 parliamentary inquiry looking into illegal donations in the Hills.Before Greenwood begins his evidence, let’s take a look at what we covered last week:Robert Assaf, a founding member of the religious factional group the Reformers, was paid $135,000 a year to work at Catholic Schools NSW, where he would sometimes do Liberal Party factional work during 9-5 hours. Fellow Reformer Jean-Claude Perrottet felt he wasn’t being fairly compensated for his factional work, while Assaf received “$135k for Rob to work for faction”, texts revealed.Intercepted phone calls between Jean-Claude Perrottet and Jean Nassif were played to the commission on Thursday, revealing the property developer had offered $100,000 to support an unnamed Perrottet brother in a preselection. In another call, after Dominic Perrottet became premier in October 2021, Nassif asked Jean-Claude to “take a message to Charlie or to Dom – the building commissioner, we need to stop him”. This was part of his alleged campaign to have David Chandler removed from the role.Jean-Claude Perrottet said Nassif’s claims were “nonsense” and denied knowing about any untoward relationship between Nassif and his brother, Charles.Jean-Claude Perrottet received regular $5000 payments from Beckington, the company set up by Jeremy Greenwood and Christian Ellis, which held Catholic Schools NSW and hotelier Michael O’Hara as clients. Perrottet couldn’t remember what work he did to justify what counsel assisting Juliet Curtin described as “substantial injections of cash”.Liberal shadow attorney-general Damien Tudehope, who has stood down from the frontbench, admitted he leaked a confidential draft report into illegal donations in the Hills to one of the key witnesses who had gone to lengths to avoid the inquiry, Jeremy Greenwood.The live stream of the inquiry can be found here.1 of 1