some time; and, secondly, by the fact that the granting of that funding would constitute a successful outcome to Mr Maguire's lobbying for which she was in part responsible. She could reasonably expect that the outcome and her participation in it would please Mr Maguire, and be conducive to maintaining their close relationship.
136 In relation to the RCM Stage 2 proposal: The applicant was the effective decisionmaker, and set in train the process leading up to the execution of the reservation of funds letter written on or before 24 August 2018, all of which was consistent with her having assured or agreed with Mr Maguire on 30 July 2018 that this funding would be granted, and that this could occur without the support of the "bureaucrats" (see [125] above).
137 As at August 2018, the was no evidence of any assessment having been made at the departmental level as to the feasibility or otherwise of the RCM Stage 2 proposal prior to the applicant approving it for funding. In this respect, the evidence was that none of the witnesses called from the Premier's office could identify any person within that office other than the applicant who was supportive of the proposal ([12.276]). The evidence of Ms Cruickshank, the applicant's chief of staff, and Mr Harley, the then head of the parliamentary liaison office in the Premier's office, was that they were not supportive of the proposal ([12.287]).
138 The RCM Stage 2 funding reservation was announced before the September 2018 byelection. The evidence of Mr Burden, the director of strategy in the applicant's office, was that he was concerned that by announcing the funding it might be seen that the government was trying to "buy" the election outcome ([12.121]). The evidence also included was that none of the "political staffers" in the applicant's office supported the announcement of the funding during the by-election. Specifically, the evidence of Ms Cruickshank and Mr Burden was that they thought that the applicant should have nothing to do with Mr Maguire ([12.211]).
139 In relation to RCM Stage 2, there was also evidence that as at 24 August 2018 the scope of works for that project had not been finalised, whether it met the relevant fund guidelines was unknown, and a final business case had not been approved ([12.137]).
140 This evidence as to the applicant's commitment to the RCM Stage 2 funding reservation, in the absence of any support from "political" or other staffers and absent any business case or assessment of the project at a departmental level, permitted a finding that she was influenced in doing so by the fact that RCM was a "passion" of Mr Maguire and that the outcome would be seen as an acknowledgement of his continuing political "relevance" and as confirming her commitment to their relationship.
- Disclosures of conflicts
141 Finally, with respect to a finding that the applicant had "consciously" or "deliberately" preferred her private interests, it is not controversial that the applicant did not disclose her relationship with Mr Maguire, notwithstanding that at each of the ERC meetings there was a request for disclosure of any conflicts of interest. There was also evidence
