UPDATED: NSW building commissioner David Chandler OAM has shocked the building and construction industry by tendering his resignation on Monday, after an internal investigation cleared him of false claims that he’d misled parliament.
Mr Chandler, a highly respected figure within the industry, had been the subject of an internal investigation following allegations in The Australian that he had misled state parliament.
That investigation has now concluded. The Department of Customer Service has confirmed to The Fifth Estate that it found those claims to be unsubstantiated, and that reports of tensions with Department of Customer Service staff are also false.
Mr Chandler advised Department of Customer Service secretary Emma Hogan of his decision to resign on Monday, after the investigation was completed.
The Fifth Estate understands Mr Chandler will remain in the role until November, and will focus his work on building reforms and the Project Remediate cladding removal program.
Parliamentary and industry sources told The Fifth Estate they had been surprised by sudden news of the resignation.
In just the past few weeks, he had briefed a number of NSW MPs about his upcoming work on cladding remediation, and attendees said he seemed enthusiastic about his role.
The catalyst for the sudden decision to stand aside appears to stem from an article that was published in The Australian on 24 June.
The newspaper published a leaked video, which it claimed...
The visual verification might not be accessible to you. We recommend you to use the audio verification instead. Important: after clicking play, you will hear 6 digits. Please wait until the audio f...