An Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) hearing heard the text which SES Deputy Commissioner Steven Pearce sent on May 28 this year referred to his colleague Tara McCarthy, who had been sacked from her deputy commissioner position two weeks earlier.

Mr Pearce forwarded the text message, written by someone else, to SES Commissioner Murray Kear, his ‘‘boss and mate’’, the public hearing was told.

In the text, Ms McCarthy was also referred to as a ‘‘rug munching bitch’’.

SES boss axed deputy on the spot: inquiry

Counsel assisting ICAC, Michael Fordham, SC, on Thursday put to Mr Pearce that he had passed on the text message because it summarised his view of Ms McCarthy at the time.

‘‘At that time, yes,’’ Mr Pearce answered.

He asked Mr Pearce if he agreed passing the text message to his boss was inappropriate. 

‘‘Correct,’’ Mr Pearce said.

‘‘You passed it on so that you could show some support for Mr Kear?’’ Mr Fordham asked. Mr Pearce answered: ‘‘Yes.’’

Mr Pearce was giving evidence, before ICAC Commissioner David Ipp, on day three of an ICAC hearing to examine whether Mr Kear fired Ms McCarthy in reprisal for her making corruption allegations against Mr Pearce.

ICAC is also examining allegations that Mr Kear improperly showed favour to Mr Pearce by failing to appropriately investigate Ms McCarthy’s allegations.

Giving evidence yesterday afternoon, Mr Kear said he saw no conflict of interest when he sat on a three-person panel which led to the appointment of Mr Pearce as the organisation’s deputy.

Mr Pearce was ultimately employed as the SES Deputy Commissioner of operations in 2010.

The hearing was told Mr Kear and Mr Pearce had been close since 2008, and had worked together in Fire and Rescue NSW.

It was put to Mr Kear on Thursday that he had breached the SES code of conduct which states that members must be aware of the potential for a conflict of interest in employment decisions and performance assessment if they had a close personal relationship with the person concerned.

Mr Kear said he didn’t believe he had to disclose the friendship with the appropriate level of management.

Mr Fordham said the friendship also should have been flagged when Tara McCarthy raised corruption allegations against Mr Pearce.

‘‘It was necessary for you to conduct some form of preliminary investigation [into the claims] yet at no stage did you disclose to anybody that Steven Pearce was your mate?’’ Mr Fordham asked.

‘‘No, I didn’t see it necessary,’’ Mr Kear answered.

The inquiry was told that Mr Kear and Mr Pearce were mates who socialised outside work, while a ‘‘toxic’’ relationship had developed between Mr Pearce and Ms McCarthy prior to her dismissal.

Mr Kear denied that he treated the two deputies differently and denied that his friendship with Mr Pearce affected the decisions he made in relation to Ms McCarthy.

Ms McCarthy, now unemployed, uncovered a series of issues surrounding the performance of Mr Pearce in the workplace. She took those concerns to ICAC.

The inquiry also heard that Mr Pearce was responsible for the SES entering into a $240,000 contract to equip its volunteers with a new car fleet described as part of the biggest single asset developed in the organisation’s history.

Despite the significant amount of money involved, Mr Pearce did not go through a formal procurement and tender process.

Mr Pearce had also been the subject of a performance review undertaken by Mr Kear in January, the same month as the two men and their families went on a camping holiday together.

‘‘You [Mr Pearce] were given a pay rise following a six-month investigation in which Tara McCarthy identified a number of shortcomings in your performance,’’ Mr Fordham said.

The inquiry continues on Friday.