A mystery foundation established just over a year ago by a businessman with connections to the Governor-General has had its federal funding scrapped.
Government sources have told the ABC that the Australian Future Leaders Foundation will no longer receive millions of dollars promised by the former Coalition government after the new government decided it was not value for money.
The foundation — which had never run a leadership program and had no website nor staff — was granted $18 million in the Morrison government's March budget.
Its budget papers stated that money would be provided over five years, and the foundation would then receive $4 million per year after that.
Governor-General David Hurley supported the foundation, and lobbied former prime minister Scott Morrison several times across 2020 and 2021 before the funding was awarded.
Concerns raised
Questions had been raised about why a foundation with no record of running leadership programs was awarded the cash with no competitive grants process.
The foundation planned to establish leadership programs for emerging mid-career leaders.
One person closely involved raised concerns that it would benefit "privileged white kids", and not help expand or promote a diversity of leaders within government and non-government sectors.
Governor-General David Hurley has always stood by the foundation.
However the promised funding has been identified in the "waste audit" that the federal government is currently undertaking as part of the October budget process.
A decision has been made that the foundation will no longer receive any federal funding.
Treasurer Jim Chalmers said the foundation would not receive any federal funding.
"What we are doing is we are going right through the budget, line by line, to make sure that we are getting value for money for some of the commitments [in the budget]," he said.
"That one didn't pass muster from our point of view, and so we won't be providing that $18 million [nor] the ongoing funding after that as well.
"We have to take some difficult decisions in the budget."
Dr Chalmers said he was "not contemplating" further investigation into the circumstances of how the funding was awarded in the first place.
A foundation with connections
The foundation was registered as a charity in April 2021 and an event for the foundation was held at the Governor-General's house in Sydney in May.
Promotional brochures seen by the ABC claimed vice-regal and government endorsement of the program, which was titled "The Governor-General's Australian Future Leaders Programme".
In correspondence seen by the ABC, foundation director and secretary Chris Hartley boasted that the Governor-General had given a PowerPoint presentation to Mr Morrison, and in another email Mr Hartley declared the Prime Minister's Office would "own" the project.
The Governor-General also agreed to be the inaugural patron of the foundation.
Mr Hartley had reached out to numerous senior leaders from different organisations and groups including Twitter, Tabcorp, Jaguar Land Rover, the Business Council, the Smith Family, Accenture, McKinsey & Co and Tenfold to get them onboard with the program.
The moves were perceived by some as an attempt to leverage relationships, to gain access to ever-more senior business and political figures.
And while he declared that those businesses had provided in-principle support, including financial and in-kind commitments, that was not always the case.
Earlier this year Mr Hartley told the ABC that the program would start towards the end of 2022, but to date there has been no update on the foundation.
Mr Hartley and the Governor-General have been contacted for comment.
