Former Victorian Labor minister Theo Theophanous has met his long-time friend and factional ally, federal Communications Minister Stephen Conroy, to lobby on behalf of a Chinese firm, according to The Age.
All NBN contracts go to tender and are decided by NBN Co without reference to the minister.
Katharine Murphy reports Theophanous is advising Huawei Technologies, a Chinese communications firm with links to the military.
Senator Conroy, who is responsible for the rollout of the $43 billion National Broadband Network (NBN), told The Age he met Mr Theophanous once, but said he wasn’t responsible for contractual decisions.
”All NBN contracts go to tender and are decided by NBN Co without reference to the minister,” he said.
Murphy reports Huawei is the second-largest telecommunications network provider in the world and employs about 300 Australian staff.
A Huawei spokesman told The Age Mr Theophanous’s role ”as part of our ongoing localisation strategy” reflected the firm’s commitment to business in Victoria.
In 2009, Senator Conroy publicly backed Mr Theophanous when a rape charge against him was dismissed.