The Sydney Morning Herald has confirmed he was shopping at Westfield Eastgardens shopping centre in Sydney’s south-east on March 22 - about 20 mins drive from his Sydney home in Elizabeth Bay.
A spokesman for Mr Harwin confirmed the Minister relocated to his Pearl Beach home on March 13,but returned to Sydney less than a week later on March 19th for"essential meetings".
Mr Harwin remained in Sydney for five days,squeezing in a shopping trip to Westfield Eastgardens before returning to Pearl Beach after a one-day special sitting of Parliament on March 24. He travelled to Sydney again on April 1 for one day to attend a doctor's appointment.
He rushed back to Sydney on Wednesday night after he was photographed at the coastal home,undermining Premier Gladys Berejiklian's message that people must not travel over the Easter long weekend.
Mr Harwin issued an apology on Thursday morning,as Premier Gladys Berejiklian said she was"deeply disappointed"by his actions.
In a statement,Mr Harwin said he had been"working remotely"from his holiday home for"a number of weeks prior"to the public health orders coming into effect,which now prohibits all non-essential travel without a"reasonable excuse".