Former Liberal powerbroker Christian Ellis evades ICAC testimony from UK exile

For nearly ten weeks the ICAC extracted evidence from a web of political operatives and even a fugitive developer, yet the central figure, former Liberal powerbroker Christian Ellis, remained absent, having relocated to the United Kingdom earlier this year. The commission repeatedly offered flexible arrangements, including evening sessions and breaks, to facilitate his participation, but Ellis declined, and his lawyer Simon Diab’s suggestion of written responses was rejected.

Ellis’s longtime associate Jeremy Greenwood testified that Ellis expressed a desire to help the inquiry but was uncertain of the process. The ICAC also denied Diab’s request to represent Ellis, citing undisclosed reasons. Although Ellis gave a brief private hearing in 2024, only a short excerpt was made public, and he has stayed silent since the hearings began. The commission now faces the task of determining whether Ellis and his network solicited unlawful donations and engaged in corruption without his direct evidence.