Former information commissioner claims in Senate inquiry he was ‘manhandled’ and ‘gaslighted’ by leadership
Leo Hardiman has spoken at length to a Senate inquiry about how his complaints about a massive freedom of information backlog were ignored by OAIC leadership
Former freedom of information commissioner Leo Hardiman has made explosive allegations in the Senate about his former agency and its most senior leader, saying his efforts to solve a vast FoI backlog were deliberately frustrated, after voicing concerns publicly, and that a false narrative about the agency's funding constraints was presented to the federal court to defend extraordinary delays in its work.
Hardiman resigned from his statutory position as FoI commissioner in March, less than 12 months into a five-year appointment, and issued a public statement criticising chronic delays in the FoI system, the consequences for government transparency, and the lack of power he held to bring about change.
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