A former member of WA's upper house has made a brief appearance in the Perth Magistrates Court on charges of hindering and disclosing information about a corruption investigation into parliamentary allowances.
Brian Ellis, a former Liberal member of the Legislative Council, is also accused of destroying material that could have been evidence in the investigation.
The charges relate to a Corruption and Crime Commission report, which found Mr Ellis and another former upper house Liberal politician Phil Edman had used electoral allowances to pay for a visit to a Japanese bath house in 2015.
The report, which was tabled in parliament, found Mr Ellis spent $1,995 on his electorate allowance credit card at the Penthouse Club in Northbridge and claimed it as a tax deduction in April 2016.
He justified the expense as having a benefit for the electorate, stating that he had met with some farmers and insurance company representatives there.
The CCC's report also found Mr Edman had used his electoral allowance to pay for Christmas functions and berthing fees for his yacht called "The Prime Minister" as well interstate travel to meet women for sex and for strippers.
The report's findings led to a prolonged argument over the fate of Mr Edman's laptop, which was initially seized by the CCC but later handed back over claims it was covered by parliamentary privilege.
The report revealed that Mr Edman had, in secretly recorded conversations, claimed "there was enough material on the computer to bury a ... lot of people and ruin their political careers forever."
When the argument ended last year, the Upper House agreed to provide more than a half million documents from it to the CCC.
Both Mr Edman and Mr Ellis were defeated at the 2017 State election.
Today, Mr Ellis was not required to plead to the four charges against him, with the case adjourned until December when he is expected to appear in court again.
Mr Edman is also facing charges of hindering and disclosing confidential information about the CCC's investigation.
He has pleaded not guilty and is due to face a trial in the Perth Magistrates Court in December.
