Convicted paedophile a lobbyist for contentious NSW South Coast developments

While on trial following multiple child sexual assault charges, a political lobbyist and Anglican priest represented developers Sealark and The Halloran Trust on controversial subdivisions in Culburra and Callala Bay.

Vested connections, not integrity, opens doors

It's tough to be a community volunteer advocating for sustainable development, heritage conservation and protecting the last remaining pockets of biodiverse forests or estuaries along the NSW coast.

The unpaid gig involves countless hours and years of writing letters to MPs, distributing leaflets and posters, building awareness through social media, hosting town forums, lodging freedom of information requests, researching planning laws and policies, gathering citizen science data and making submissions to state government or deputations to local council.

I know, because I have particpated in all these tasks for Callala's nature and community advocacy group, Callala Matters.

Even when dozens of similar groups form collectives like Coastal Residents United, and thousands of public submissions are delivered with legal and scientific arguments, the success rate of these David vs Goliath battles is very low.

It's especially frustrating to campaigners that, behind the scenes, deep-pocketed developers pay generously for politically connected lobbyists to shepherd their proposals through the planning process and overcome public opposition. (An independent report in 2023 showed that lobbyists hired to influence governments in Australia are paid twice the wage of average workers.)

But when a lobbyist insider walking the halls of parliament turns out to be a child sex offender, it's a 'kick in the guts' to grassroots organisers who struggle to get replies to emails, let alone face to face meeting time.

Craig Munnings was that insider - paid by Shoalhaven's largest land developers, Sealark and the Halloran Trust, to lobby government for controversial subdivision projects, while on bail and embroiled in trials over his child sexual abuse charges.

One community leader, fearing legal action if named as criticising Sealark or Halloran, said it was a 'constant exhausting slog' for community members to get a foot in the door with planners and politicians only to have evidence and support dismissed as nimbyism or 'ideology'.

Further south near Lake Conjola National Park, Manyana Matters Environmental Association (MMEA) organised community members to fight for many years against a real estate scheme on sensitive land in an historical fire corridor and flood prone area.

MMEA President, Bill Eger, said the local council originally rejected the DA "for very good reasons".

"Council fought the developer in the Land & Environment Court. Then, following an election, the new council negotiated with the developer to approve the development plan," Mr Eger said.

"It's very frustrating, it's like yelling into the wind, but we are not giving up - we now have a community of over 500 highly engaged supporters with success protecting local wildlife.

"We still believe we are stronger when we stand together."

Lobbying reforms won't stop cronyism

The Minns Government announced yesterday that third-party lobbyists will be forced to disclose links to local councils following the Operation Rosny anti-corruption inquiry that illuminated Liberal Party connections to fugitive property developer, Jean Nassif.

The reforms seek to tighten records and formalise investigative powers for the NSW Electoral Commission as the lobbying regulator.

Transparency will help. But, with so much money to be made, lobbying won't stop.

The NSW Electoral Commission's Lobbyist Register names Craig Munnings and Kylie Munnings as lobbyist employees of CRAKYL Pty Ltd, with a client list of five. Three of those are Sealark Pty Ltd, The Trustee for the Halloran Trust and Wollumboola LTD, each interconnected entities owning and developing land throughout the Shoalhaven, most notably in Culburra and Callala.

(UPDATE: On October 14 2026, the day after this article was published, CRAKYL Pty Ltd was 'suspended' on the register of lobbyists.)

The other two listed 'clients' of CRAKYL are Munnings & Associates and the Australian Chinese Consultancy Service, both companies actually owned and managed by Craig Munnings himself, with websites that list him as the CEO.

According to the Third-party and business contacts lobbyist register, which records meetings between government departments and lobbyists, Munnings acted for Sealark and The Halloran Trust during an October 17, 2024 meeting over 'Sealark's development at Callala Bay and West Culburra'.

At that meeting, Munnings requested and received advice on who to engage with at the Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure to address 'challenges associated with progressing the proposal' at Callala Bay. Callala community members had mobilised since 2021 to oppose the clearing of mature forest populated by several threatened species, including endangered Greater Gliders.

That meeting summary reads:

Strategic alliances to overcome blocks

Munnings & Associates offer several lobbying and consultancy services including:
- Advice on strategy and direction when engaging with Governments
- Investigation and review of historical factors
- Management of contentious issues
- Engagement with Senior Departmental and Government Officials

This publication has sought comment from Sealark/Halloran over whether the directors and trustees were aware of charges against Craig Munnings and what due diligence was undertaken before engaging him as a lobbyist.

If a response is provided, this article will be updated to include it.

Ordained priest and Labor insider

Munnings was an ordained Anglican priest in Newcastle at the time of some of his crimes. However, no apparent church connection exists between The Halloran Trust Chairman of Directors, Dr Robert Tong AM (whose bio notes 'significant governance committee experience with the Anglican Church') or Sealark/Halloran director and trustee Mr Doug Marr who served on the Anglican synod for more than 40 years.

There is nothing on the public record suggesting Sealark/Halloran/Wollumboola land developers had any knowledge of Munnings' pending trial when they engaged CRAKYL's services in 2024 while his identity as the accused sex offender was still suppressed.

But Craig Munnings was originally named in NBN Central Coast News court reporting from 2019 that is still available online today.

"The 54-year-old is accused of sexually and indecently assaulting a young girl at numerous locations in Woy Woy."

"He was a church youth volunteer at the time.

"The Anglican Diocese of Newcastle says it fully cooperated with police after Reverend Craig Munnings fronted court over alleged sex offences dating back to the 1980s."

NBN reported that NSW Labor suspended Munnings' party membership on the day of his first court appearance in 2019.

A suppression order meant to protect the victims was then recorded in the courts' Justicelink system as also covering Munnings' name.

A court statement said the name supression was an 'error' that only emerged during his final trial. Authorities left the order in place until the verdict because further delays were considered too risky.

Craig Munnings was publicly named after he was found guilty.

Reporting of Munning's career in the Anglican church is also easily found online.

In 1996 the Sydney Morning Herald reported that Munnings was sacked as assistant minister in Lismore parish for "intemperate, rude and coarse" behaviour.

The Bishop of the Grafton Diocese, Rev. Bruce Schultz, wrote that Rev. Craig Munnings was an arrogant, materialistic self-promoter with "an apparent lack of a real and personal relationship with Christ".

Nevertheless, the ordained Anglican priest went on to churches at Woy Woy, Umina and Terrigal.

Across 12 years, Munnings advised Labor ministers Ian Macdonald, John Aquilina, Di Beamer and Harry Woods in portfolios including regional development, rural affairs, local government, infrastructure and planning. Munnings also claimed to advise policy makers in juvenile justice, commerce, fair trading and mineral resources, as well as the Speaker of the New South Wales Parliament.

Munnings gave evidence in 2012 and 2013 to the ICAC inquiry into Ian Macdonald and Eddie Obeid over a 2008 coal mining deal. Both former ministers were ultimately jailed.

In multiple mainsteam media reports, Munnings was described in that inquiry as Macdonald's 'right-hand man', a label he rejected as someone else's view.

But Munning told the inquiry that letters of support for a controversial training mine proposal were intended as "political cover" and that his boss' known union connection was a "bad political look".

In 2008, Munnings ran (unsuccessfully) as a Labor candidate for what was then Gosford Council, noting involvement with Woy Woy and Ettalong Scouts, the Bays Progress Association, and Woy Woy, Umina and Terrigal Anglican churches.

Seven years until 14 convictions

On August 7 this year in Gosford District Court, the jury took four hours and 46 minutes to convict Munnings of all 14 offences against two girls that happened in the mid-1980s and early 1990s.

Munnings was convicted of indecent and aggravated assault, committing an act of indecency with a child under 16 and having carnal knowledge of a child.

One victim was 10 when the abuse began. Munnings pleaded not guilty.

The Central Coast News reported that the court heard details about how Munnings started indecently and sexually assaulting the first young victim to whom he gave lifts in his car after church social events.

When that girl was in high school, Munnings tried to have sexual intercourse with her, though he was engaged to be married at the time.

Years later, after becoming ordained as an Anglican priest on the Central Coast, Munnings abused a second girl, aged in her mid teens.

Later, both women separately confided in church leaders and the allegations were reported to police.

Trial dates were set nine times between August 2020 and July 2026, and three juries were discharged. Munnings represented himself from 2022. One trial in 2024 was aborted after the Crown raised concerns that his opening address was prejudicial.

Munnings claimed at various times to have prostate cancer, to have suffered a heart attack and to need heart surgery.

As the verdicts were read, a court officer saw him 'pour' pills into his mouth. He was taken to hospital by ambulance after the NSW Poisons Information Centre was contacted, and then released the same day into custody.

Bail exemption for overseas work

While on bail, Munnings kept running his consultancy businesses.

His original bail conditions required him to surrender his passport. But in February 2025 he won a bail variation allowing his expired passport to be returned and renewed.

He then travelled to China, attending a business conference in Guangzhou as a representative and government relations adviser of the Australian Guangdong Chamber of Commerce.

According to The Daily Mail reporting, after its journalist contacted the AGCC, the organisation distanced itself from connection to Craig Munnings.

Other venerable institutions, businesses and individuals could easily do the same.

If Premier Chris Minns genuinely wanted to end undue influence and manipulation from big business, he'd direct government decision-makers to open their doors as wide to local community representatives, non-profit public interest groups and ecologists as they do to old political mates with vested interests.

When it comes to withstanding public scrutiny, my bet is on community volunteers.