NSW shadow attorney general and Liberal upper house leader Damien Tudehope appeared before the Independent Commission Against Corruption on 4 August 2026 as part of Operation Rosny, where he was questioned about a 2018 message from his former staffer Jean-Claude Perrottet declaring that "Scott and Damien are afraid" (The Guardian).

Operation Rosny (reference E22/1018) is investigating allegations that the Reformers, a grouping within the NSW Liberal Party's conservative right faction, solicited or accepted illegal donations to recruit or renew party members through branch stacking. Public hearings opened on 27 July 2026 with an opening address by counsel assisting Peggy Dwyer SC (ICAC).

Jean-Claude Perrottet, the younger brother of former Liberal premier Dominic Perrottet, worked in Tudehope's electorate office from 2017 to 2018 and later as an assistant policy advisor in his parliamentary office in 2019, when Tudehope was minister for finance (ICAC). Under questioning, Tudehope admitted that Jean-Claude had a "talent" for recruiting and renewing new Liberal Party members. He also acknowledged speaking at multiple Reformers recruitment events, describing himself as "a warrior for social issues for the party." The Reformers sought more conservative party positions on same-sex marriage, abortion, and euthanasia.

Tudehope identified "Scott" in the 2018 message as the former head of his electorate office. He told the commission he did not recall raising concerns about, or being aware of, Jean-Claude possibly using his electorate-office hours for recruiting Liberal members. However, Tudehope's chief of staff "blew up" about a newspaper article reporting that staffers were spending ministerial hours on recruitment activities in breach of their code of conduct. Reformer Christian Ellis was employed in Tudehope's ministerial office for three months before being terminated in July 2019. Tudehope said the newspaper article was "probably the precipitating event" for Ellis's dismissal.

The financial dimensions of the factional activity drew sustained questioning. After being shown evidence of a bank transfer and messages in which Jean-Claude wrote "Damien" paid for a venue and "Damien got it," suggesting a $5,000 contribution for a Reformers table at a right-faction event, Tudehope admitted he may have made payments to the Reformers. Separately, Tudehope's former business partner, hotelier Michael O'Hara, is alleged to have made political donations to the Reformers that were prohibited because of his involvement in the liquor and gambling industries. Tudehope accepted under Dwyer's questioning that he had introduced Reformers Ellis and Robert Assaf to O'Hara and was aware that O'Hara was "generous" and likely to support their factional work financially.

The inquiry has also heard allegations that Jean-Claude Perrottet asked a businessman to contribute $50,000 to an operation to unseat federal MP Alex Hawke from his seat (The Saturday Paper). A hearing transcript from 28 July 2026 records that James Tudehope was aware Robert Assaf was doing Reformers work during work hours (ICAC).

Tudehope stood aside from his shadow cabinet roles during the inquiry. He is not named in any allegations and is not accused of wrongdoing. Dominic Perrottet has not been accused of wrongdoing, and Jean-Claude Perrottet has previously denied any wrongdoing. The commission had initially altered its plans and was no longer expecting to hear from Tudehope, with the hearing wrapping early, before he ultimately gave evidence on 4 August (SMH). Jean-Claude Perrottet is listed to appear as a witness on 5 August (ICAC witness list).

The broader context here is one of institutional pressure on the NSW Liberal Party's factional machinery. Operation Rosny's focus on whether staff paid from the public purse were redirected into party-building activity, and whether prohibited donors were channeled through factional networks, touches on two distinct but related integrity concerns: the misuse of parliamentary staffing resources and the circumvention of NSW electoral donation laws. The liquor and gambling prohibition exists precisely because those industries are considered vulnerable to influence-peddling, and O'Hara's alleged donations sit squarely within that regulatory target.

What gives this hearing its political charge is the Perrottet name. Jean-Claude's proximity to both his brother, the former premier, and to Tudehope, a senior figure in the current shadow cabinet, means the inquiry's findings could reverberate well beyond the individuals directly under investigation. Tudehope's own admissions, while falling short of confessed wrongdoing, placed him at the intersection of the Reformers' recruitment drive, their financing, and the employment of factional operatives in taxpayer-funded roles. Whether that intersection amounts to corruption, poor judgment, or routine factional politics is the question ICAC must ultimately weigh.