Elizabeth O'Keeffe

Elizabeth O’Keeffe is a former senior public servant in the State Government of Victoria. She was Executive Director of Land Victoria from the early 1990s until 2002 and then the Chief Operating Officer of the National Gallery of Victoria until 2005. After leaving the public service she was a Director of Transparency International Australia until 2013.

Land Victoria

O'Keeffe was the Executive Director (i.e. Chief Executive Officer) of Land Victoria, under the Department of National Resources and Environment (DNRE) from early 1990s to 2002. O'Keeffe reported to the then Secretary of DNRE Chloe Munro from 1999-2002. Prior to 1999, O'Keeffe reported to then Secretary Michael Taylor. Land Victoria (now called Land Use Victoria) is the land authority for the State Government of Victoria in Australia. O’Keeffe’s tenure as Executive Director of Land Victoria is one of controversy and scandals, including:
1. Estate Agency Guarantee Fund scandal; 2. Threats and intimidation the Surveyor-General; 3. Reassign statutory responsibilities of Surveyor-General to other units of Land Victoria, breaching legislation - including the contracting for Vicmap property database, Measurement Calibration; Survey Control Network; GPS Base Station network (CORS); 4. Weakening the Office of the Valuer-General and downgrading the statutory position; 5. Blocking independent expert investigations concerning the Lindsay Fox Portsea land-grabbing complaints; 6. Interference with Victorian electoral boundary re-distribution process; 7. Threats of legal action to intimidate staff of Land Victoria.

Throughout these, O'Keeffe seemed to have enjoyed the strong support of Minister Garbutt and Secretary Munro, despite the frequent concerns raised by the State opposition and in the media.

Estate Agents Guarantee Fund Scandal

O’Keeffe's leadership of Land Victoria was raised in the Victorian Parliament by Opposition environment spokesman Victor Perton on 17 April 2002 for her leading role in the Estate Agents Guarantee Fund scandal. Specifically, Perton reported that Land Victoria and the Department of Justice (DoJ) had "conspired to invent a 'survey reform' project to extract $7.5 million from the fund. Land Victoria, a division of DNRE, under direction of O’Keeffe, and in collaboration with DoJ, was reported to have attempted to create “the survey project” to obtain extra government funding through EAGF, despite already having been funded. The administration of EAGF was under DoJ.

O’Keeffe's role in the EAGF scandal was reported to have also involved obtaining high level political approval for wrongful access to EAGF funds between October and December 2000. This included “invention” of a $1.5 million “fraudulent survey project” as well as “other funds hidden away in smaller applications” totalling $7.5 million. It was also reported that the survey project proposal was not revealed by O’Keeffe to the Surveyor-General of Victoria. Perton reported that efforts by the Surveyor-General, Keith Bell, to raise his concerns about the attempts to obtain funds inappropriately from EAGF through his office resulted in the Surveyor-General being threatened and intimidated by O'Keeffe. It was later reported that the Surveyor-General had earlier reported his concerns to the Auditor-General who stepped in to prevent it from proceeding. The Surveyor-General also reported his concerns to the Ombudsman. Perton, in April 2002 in Parliament and earlier in the media, quoted "from documents from 2001 in which the assistant director of land records and information services, Ivan Powell, talks of having 'invented some benefits' in regards to the project and of a request to 'invent another layer of detail'. Powell was a senior Land Registry official (under Land Victoria). Perton reported to the Parliament that O’Keeffe was acting with the full support of the responsible Minister, Sherryl Garbutt. Garbutt, the Minister for Conservation and Environment, to which Land Victoria was accountable.

Further, Perton reported that investigations by the Auditor-General and by Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu (Deloitte) were not willingly assisted by O’Keeffe and Land Victoria. Requests for information and assistance by Deloitte's were blocked by Land Victoria. Perton reported that on 31 May 2001, Deloitte requested information from Land Victoria. In response, O’Keeffe's subordinate, John Hartigan, Director of the Land Registry (under Land Victoria) directed all staff to not comply with any request for information from Deloitte.

Perton reported that the Surveyor-General initially raised his concerns of the proposal to obtain funds from EAGF on 7 March 2001. His concerns were dismissed by O’Keeffe who “responded in threatening terms” that he was accountable to Garbutt and the Secretary (Munro) through O’Keeffe and Hartigan.

Specifically regarding the hiring of legal firm and private investigators to investigate the Surveyor-General and his office, Garbutt advised that DENR under Munro had ordered an investigation but could find no evidence. In fact, efforts by DENR to blame Bell for leaks were misplaced as Bell was a protected whistleblower, having gone through the appropriate channel to raise concerns with the Ombudsman. Thus this was further evidence of efforts to intimidate and harass Bell.

A subsequent investigation by the State Ombudsman, “A conspiracy between members of the Department of Natural Resources and Environment and of the Department of Justice to defraud the Estate Agents Guarantee Fund” found the attempt represented a conflict of interest and was not ethical. The Ombudsman advised two whistle-blowers had come forward to his office which led to his investigation in accordance with ‘public interest disclosures’ under section 50 the Whistle-blowers Protection Act 2001 and launched on 19 June 2002. The Ombudsman found that the "projectising" of the survey function was little more than a scheme to obtain additional funding, despite already being appropriated. The Ombudsman concluded: “Finally, the allegations that arose when this matter was placed under scrutiny ought to stand as a warning to those entrusted with determining the eligibility of applicants and/or programmes for funding from the various Statutory Trust Funds.”

Perton also reported to the Parliament that this was not the first attempt by Land Victoria to illegally obtain funds from the EAGF. The Auditor-General had prevented an earlier attempt by O’Keeffe-led Land Victoria and the Department of Justice to “raid the EAGF of $45 million".

Surveyor-General of Victoria

The Opposition frequently raised its concerns regarding O’Keeffe's performance as the Executive Director of Land Victoria especially on matters of governance and accountability during the period 2001–02. O'Keeffe was especially cited for her interference with, including threats and intimidation of, the Surveyor-General, Bell, in the performance of his responsibilities. Such interference included: attempts to block or alter annual Surveyor-General reports; hiring of legal firm and private investigators to investigate the Surveyor-General and his office; and efforts to interfere with the Surveyor-General's review of State electoral boundaries in his capacity as an Electoral Boundaries Commissioner. Over the period 2001–04, The Age, Herald Sun and ABC carried numerous reports of such interference and it was frequently raised by the Opposition in both Houses of the Parliament of Victoria reported in Hansard. Such public reporting continued well after O’Keeffe departed Land Victoria in August 2002.

Bell, through his annual reports required under the Survey Coordination Act (1958) reiterated concerns that while important responsibilities had been removed from him, he retained statutory accountability for them. In late 2001 the Auditor-General of Victoria undertook a performance audit of the survey information managed by Land Victoria. This review was tabled in Parliament in June 2002. The Auditor General confirmed concerns raised by Bell that key responsibilities assigned to the Surveyor-General under the Survey Co-ordination Act 1958 had been transferred to other units within Land Victoria, mainly the Land Information Group under its Director, Steven Jacoby. Significantly, arising from the Auditor-General’s review, as well as a further review by RMIT University and a further DNRE consultant’s review “on a mutually agreed basis with the department” was the changed reporting of the Surveyor-General to the DNRE Deputy Secretary – Services, then Dale Seymour.

It was also reported that O’Keeffe had approved an illegal $100,000 contract for a consultant to “lobby her own Minister” Garbutt to discredit the Surveyor-General. The contract was signed with the Australian Spatial Information Business Association (ASIBA), now known the Spatial Information Business Association (SIBA). The contract was agreed between O'Keeffe and then ASIBA Chairman, Tony Wheeler, and then ASIBA Chief Executive Officer, David Hocking. The contract was signed with the concurrence of Garbutt and Munro. After adverse media and Opposition reporting, the contract was found to not be appropriate and was cancelled after the first tranche of $25,000 was paid to ASIBA.

Some five months after Bell had resigned as Surveyor-General in July 2003, the media reported on Bell's experiences and the efforts to intimidate him and prevent his undertaking of his statutory roles. Especially noteworthy was that the surveying profession, the private sector and even the Premier, always retained the "utmost confidence" in Bell. The media reported its view that " Bell was targeted because he had internally raised concerns about the integrity of the proposed scheme to take funds from EAGF as well as his consistent candor in undertaking his responsibilities and reporting. Both the Auditor-General and the Ombudsman shared Bell's concerns.

Bell, who served as the Surveyor-General 1999-2003, was officially recognized for his professional service and contributions, including a Doctorate of Applied Science Honoris Causa, RMIT University in 2003 while still serving as the Surveyor-General and further awards following his term which include a Lifetime Achievement Award, The University of Melbourne in 2021 and appointment as a Member of the Order of Australia in the 2022 Queen's Birthday Honours (Australia).

Valuer-General of Victoria

The Office of the Valuer-General, placed under Land Victoria during O’Keeffe’s tenure, suffered serious resourcing issues, including the statutory position also being downgraded and more broadly interference in the performance and delivery of statutory functions. Then Valuer-General, Jack Dunham, made statements on this subject to the media in mid-2002. His public comments drew the ire of O’Keeffe and Minister Garbutt. No action was taken by Secretary Munro. Dunham served as Valuer-General for the period 1995-2007.

The Valuer-General also reported concerns about the lack of reliability of Land Victoria’s Vicmap property database in 2001. The Vicmap property database was under Jacoby, the Director of the Land Information Group of Land Victoria. This was noted by the Surveyor-General who stated in his 2001-02 Annual Report:
“The Valuer General has advised that during the year, in the undertaking of the Rural Assistance Program, which involved some 14 rural councils, approximately 20,000 land parcels were identified as missing or incorrectly described in the VicMap Property database. This highlights the lack of completeness of the VicMap Property database. The completeness of the VicMap Property database could be improved if the Valuer General’s work could be extended to cover all remaining rural councils.”

Lindsay Fox Portsea Land Grabbing

In the 1990s,many complaints from the public were submitted to the Victorian government - to ministers and Land Victoria regarding Fox's construction of walls and breakwaters in the beach areas outside of his Portsea property on the Mornington Peninsular. These constructions enabled significant accretion of land to the beach changing the mean high water mark boundary. Normal accretion is required to be slow and imperceptible. The Fox constructions enabled rapid accretion. During 1997-99, acting Surveyors-General Barrie Bremner and Allan Fennell, undertook expert investigations and determined that the gains in land were neither slow nor imperceptible. As such, Fox could not claim ownership of the accreted lands. Bremner's and Fennell's investigations were stopped by O'Keeffe. In 1999-2000, then Surveyor-General Bell undertook expert investigations, which including reviewing the previous investigations by Bremner and Fennell. Bell's reporting to Minister Garbutt and Secretary Munro through O'Keeffe, was stopped by O'Keeffe. Public complaints have continued over the years.

Spatial Information Industry Action Agenda and ANZLIC

O’Keeffe was a member of the Spatial Information Industry Action Agenda Steering Group, representing the Australian New Zealand Land Information Council (ANZLIC). Warren Entsch, then Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Industry, Science and Resources, officially welcomed the establishment of a steering group to drive the Spatial Information Industry Action Agenda in November 2000. The Action Agenda was released in September 2001.

Under the Spatial Information Industry Action Agenda, on 25 September 2001, then Minister for Industry, Science and Resources, Senator Nick Minchin announced a $2 million Grant to a consortium of private “spatial firms” to increase the effectiveness of spatial information. ASIBA was identified as the industry body to lead most of the responsibility under the action agenda. Minchin also identified the key intergovernmental roles of ANZLIC under the Action Agenda.

O’Keeffe represented ANZLIC which was then chaired by Warwick Watkins from the late 1990s until 2011, when he was found guilty of corruption by the New South Wales Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) and sacked from government. In late 2001, O’Keeffe approved a $100,000 contract for a consultant to “lobby her own Minister” Sherryl Garbutt. The lobbyist, from ASIBA, was tasked with lobbying the Minister to support the Spatial Action Agenda and to discredit the then Surveyor General of Victoria. ASIBA later became known as the Spatial Information Business Association SIBA. Various reports in the media and Parliament advise that O'Keeffe's Land Victoria lobbying contract with ASIBA was considered an inappropriate use of public funds and it was cancelled after a public outcry, with only the first tranche of $25,000 paid.

Departure from Land Victoria

On 12 July 2002, the prominent Melbourne newspaper, The Age, reported that O’Keeffe had resigned and further reported that the Opposition claimed O’Keeffe had been sacked. Minister Garbutt denied that O'Keeffe had been sacked. The same day, O’Keeffe issued an internal memo, copied to all DNRE staff, dismissing the Opposition claims and advising she had instructed her lawyers to seek an unconditional retraction and apology from the Opposition and media. Also, she advised she would take legal action on any further claims.

National Gallery of Victoria

She was subsequently the Chief Operating Officer of the National Gallery of Victoria (NGV) from August 2002 until September 2005. She also served as Secretary to the NGV Council of Trustees. The Age reported 7 January 2004 on a potential cover-up at the NGV when a glass panel in the roof shattered in late 2003 following the re-opening after almost 4 years of closure for renovations. "The gallery has been warned that more glass panels - a feature of the recently reopened gallery's $168 million redesign - could shatter.” O’Keeffe advised that a preliminary report had speculated that the breakage might have been caused by extreme heat combined with chemical reactions in the glass. O’Keeffe was interviewed on ABC Radio Melbourne, on 7 July 2004, to explain that there was no danger to the public. However, she was contradicted by members of the public raising their own experiences at the Gallery. O’Keeffe was described by ABC as having a “bad day” due to her lack of understanding of the issues and dangers. On 9 February 2004, it was the NGV's Director, rather than O’Keeffe, who announced NGV and Major Projects Victoria Department had ordered an engineering audit of the Gallery.

The NGV, in its 2003-04 Annual Report acknowledged the adverse media attention that the glass shattering had attracted.

Transparency International Australia

O’Keeffe subsequently worked as a strategic management consultant and also for Transparency International Australia as a Director from 7 August 2006 to 20 November 2014. In November 2012, O’Keeffe was especially critical of the Victorian State Government under then Premier Ted Baillieu regarding whistleblower complaints about politicians. O'Keeffe's role on Transparency International came after the Victorian government EAGF funds scandals and the intimidation and threatening of senior officials such as the Surveyor-General. O’Keeffe, also appeared as a witness on behalf of Transparency International, before the Victorian Parliament Law Reform Committee on 29 June 2009, regarding the Inquiry into review of the Members of Parliament (Register of Interests) Act. She reported on the roles of Transparency International in reporting on corruption and presented her views.Law Reform Committee Inquiry into review of the Members of Parliament (Register of Interests) Act Melbourne — 29 June 2009, Witness Ms E. O’Keeffe, Director, Transparency International Australia, https://www.parliament.vic.gov.au/images/stories/committees/lawrefrom/members_parliament/Transcripts/2009-06-29_Transparency_International.pdf

References

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Living people
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Australian public servants
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