Rumours swirl as top executive quits

A NSW construction watchdog who unexpectedly quit this week has been cleared of allegations he misled parliament as rumours swirl about the reason for his departure.

Building commissioner David Chandler broke his silence late on Wednesday after media speculation about why he decided to quit.

But a joint statement from Mr Chandler and his boss, Customer Service Department secretary Emma Hogan, stopped short of answering that question.

“I believe the time is right for a reset and I am firmly committed to working with the secretary, the team and industry until the end of my tenure,” Mr Chandler said.

“I do not want my resignation to distract people from what has been achieved so far, and the work that is still to be done.”

Mr Chandler was being investigated internally after evidence he had given to parliament about his work appeared to have been contradicted by a leaked video.

Ms Hogan, who carried out the investigation herself, said Mr Chandler had been cleared, and that his departure was voluntary.

“I want to thank Mr Chandler for his customer advocacy and his leadership on the NSW building reform initiatives the past three years,” she said.

The video which sparked the investigation showed Mr Chandler saying he’d given banks a list of certifiers he thought should be “unemployable”.

Those comments appeared to contradict testimony he gave to parliament that recommending certifiers was “not what the regulator does”.

The investigation was just one of the possible reasons that were floated by MPs and industry figures speculating about why Mr Chandler decided to leave.

Just three months ago he indicated he was looking forward to continuing working, saying developers who had hoped to pop champagne when he retired should wait to open their bottles.

“I really was set on going fishing on September 30 … (but) I thought, wouldn’t it be fun to give them a reason to put the champagne back in the cabinet,” he said in April.

There was speculation in media reports Mr Chandler had quit because the internal investigation had soured his relationship with the government.

But a Customer Service spokeswoman slapped down those rumours.

“Reports of fractious relationships with departmental staff are also false,” she said.

Opposition MPs are keen to find out the reason Mr Chandler resigned, and have invited him to testify at budget estimates in September.

The department might also be ordered to hand over documents relating to the resignation after MPs return to parliament next month.

Labor’s better regulation spokeswoman, Courtney Houssos, said the government should make the findings of the internal probe public.

“If the investigation has concluded, then I would be calling on the Minister to release that publicly,” she said.

“We still have no more answers as to why the building commissioner resigned. If he’s leaving we need to know who will be spearheading the government’s response to the building industry.

“This is a dramatic and unplanned departure and we still don’t have an explanation as to why.”

Fair Trading Minister Eleni Petinos, who ordered the investigation into Mr Chandler, did not respond to questions about why he resigned.

She instead responded by thanking him for his nearly three years in the role.

“I thank him for his work and wish him well in his future endeavours,” Ms Petinos said.

The job of the building commissioner is to protect homeowners against shoddy developers. The commissioner has the power to investigate and take disciplinary action against builders who misbehave.

Mr Chandler will continue in the role until November 30. Ms Hogan said she hoped to find a replacement before that date.

The building commissioner’s office was created in 2019, in the wake of the Opal Tower and Mascot Towers scandals, where brand new apartment buildings were found to be cracked.