Question on Notice regarding the circumstances surrounding the departure of the Managing Director of the Small Business Development Corporation (SBDC), focusing on potential political interference and conflicts with the previous Minister.

AnsweredQoN 1651Legislative Assembly
Asked
28 November 2006
Portfolio
Small Business

QuestionView source ↗

I refer to the unexpected removal of the previous, and long-serving, Managing Director of the Small Business Development Corporation (SBDC), Mr George Etrelezis, via a management-initiated redundancy and ask –
(1) Will the Minister fully investigate this matter to ensure there was no political interference by the previous Minister, the Member for Peel, as per the Public Sector Management Act in the removal of Mr George Etrelezis?
(2) What were the previous Minister’s stated reasons for Mr Etrelezis’s removal from this position?
(3) Over the 11 years he acted as Managing Director of the SBDC, were there ever any concerns noted about his competency to run the Corporation?
(4) What party initiated the negotiations that led to Mr Etrelezis’s removal as Chief Executive Officer (CEO)?
(5) Were there any conflicts between Mr Etrelezis and the previous Minister for Small Business, Mr Norm Marlborough, about the decisions being made in running the SBDC?
(6) If so, what were these conflicts?
(7) Did Mr Etrelezis leave his position voluntarily, or did the previous Minister refuse to renew his contract?
(8) Will the Minister undertake to have the Office of the Public Sector Standards Commissioner investigate the departure of Mr Etrelezis, under their criteria concerning the employment of CEOs in the public sector?

AnswerView source ↗

Answered
1 January 2007
Responded by
Minister for Small Business
Response time
34 days
I am not aware of concerns regarding Mr Etrelezis's performance nor of any conflict between the previous Minister and Mr Etrelezis regarding the decisions being made in running the SBDC. Management Initiated Retirements are mutually agreed between the parties and have not been matters, which have been the subject of investigation by the Public Sector Standards Commissioner.
Management Initiated Retirements are mutually agreed between the parties and have not been matters, which have been the subject of investigation by the Public Sector Standards Commissioner.

Explore WA Government Data

Search the full archive in the free dashboard, or query programmatically via API.

Explore more