Former Coalition adviser wins $190,000 bushfire agency contract without full tender

Exclusive: Richard Forbes is being paid to produce videos documenting the recovery of communities hit by last summer's fires

A former senior Howard government media adviser has been awarded a $190,000 public relations contract with Australia's bushfire recovery agency without a full tender process.

Guardian Australia can reveal Richard Forbes, who was an adviser to the former deputy prime minister and Nationals leader Mark Vaile, is being paid to produce videos documenting the recovery of communities affected by the black summer" bushfires.