Family reeling after suicide
The family of well-known Perth businessman Ross McGinn said yesterday that he “touched the lives of thousands” as they reeled from his sudden decision to take his own life last weekend.
Mr McGinn’s wife Annmarie, daughter Susan Slee and son, also named Ross, said the death of the Acrow Ceilings managing director had come as a shock.
Mrs McGinn said she and her husband had been together since they were 13-year-olds in Scotland and Mr McGinn was her “whole life”.
An accomplished footballer, Mr McGinn played in several successful youth sides fielded by English club Manchester City in the 1970s. He moved to Perth with his family in 1982.
Mr McGinn said his father, 53, started off as a truck-driving labourer at the company he eventually bought and “a lot of the younger guys idolised him”.
Mr McGinn was well known in business, fashion and philanthropic circles for his support of causes including Telethon, the Butterfly Ball fundraiser for Down Syndrome WA, and STYLEAID.
Mrs Slee said the outpouring of support from within the construction wider business industries was amazing. “He did so much for so many people,” she said. “He was here and happy and then he was gone.”
Acrow Ceilings was subcontracted to the Perth Children’s Hospital project and Mr McGinn Jr said the company was waiting on progress payments totalling $2 million from construction giant John Holland. “My father was a very brave man,” Mr McGinn said.
“His last act was to ensure the gentlemen that had to be let go from that project as a result of the non-payment were paid their last two weeks wages and the suppliers were paid in full.”
Fairfax Media reported yesterday that Yuanda Australia, which worked on the hospital’s external facade, had demanded payment of $8.6 million from John Holland and other subcontractors were lodging similar claims.
John Holland referred questions to the State Government.
Treasurer Mike Nahan, whose Office of Strategic Projects is responsible for PCH, said he had met Mr McGinn’s family on Wednesday.
The State Opposition called for a formal inquiry into the non-payment of subcontractors at the $1.2 billion project.
Premier Colin Barnett said he would rather see the issue resolved and promised the Government would step in to mediate contract disputes.
“We will certainly do all we can to resolve that to make sure that people who have done work on the children’s hospital are paid in full,” he said.
Shadow commerce minister Kate Doust said it appeared the Government had failed to heed the lessons of similar dysfunction on the Building the Education Revolution projects run by its Building Management and Works arm in 2013.
“The Government will get a nice shiny hospital and John Holland will cut the ribbon but at the end of the day a whole lot of subcontractors will have had to close to achieve it,” she said.
Telethon chief executive Steve Mummery said Mr McGinn had been a strong supporter of the charity.
“This has come as a real shock to us. He was loved by all whether they worked for him or were a friend,” Mr Mummery said.
Crown Perth public relations manager Denise Cheir said Mr McGinn was “a true gentlemen: a quiet, gentle, extremely generous man, a strategic, clever and honest corporate man. He loved his family more than anything”.
