Neil Paterson believes he and Shane Patton’s ‘frank’ feedback to the Andrews and Allan governments cost them their careers

There had been squabbles for years between the Andrews-Allan governments and Shane Patton and Neil Paterson. In February, it all came to a head in dramatic fashion.

On his first day back in police headquarters, new acting chief Rick Nugent seemed surprisingly preoccupied with distancing himself from the carnage that had led to his return, insiders say.

Nugent made a beeline for then-deputy Neil Paterson’s office, where he proceeded to assure him he had no role in Shane Patton’s dismissal, days earlier.

“The conversation was so odd that it actually left me thinking how improbable in the extreme it would be that the first conversation that the government had with Rick about his return to Victoria Police was the afternoon of Sunday the 16th of February,” Paterson has told the Herald Sun.

Then just days later, on the afternoon of February 20, Nugent summoned Paterson to his office on the 37th floor of Victoria Police headquarters in Spencer St.

Rick Nugent was reportedly preoccupied with distancing himself from the carnage that led to his return. Picture: Instagram

Now he was delivering the news to Paterson that, like his boss, he had to go.

Nugent allegedly told Paterson that the Police Minister, Anthony Carbines, had made it clear he would not be reappointed.

Paterson asked for a reason, but says none was given.

He left the building after 37 years in the force, and has not been back.

There had been squabbles between the Andrews-Allan governments with Patton and Paterson over the past five years.

Rick Nugent allegedly told Neil Paterson that the Police Minister Anthony Carbines had made it clear he would not be reappointed. Picture: AAP

The government’s encroachment into policing had riled the top cops.

During Daniel Andrews’ reign as premier, he had been known to thump his fist on his desk in virtual meetings during the Covid years, demanding Patton take a hardline approach to enforcing his draconian health measures that made Patton and his force deeply unpopular with the public.

Then the government’s softening on a suite of law and order issues, particularly bail laws, sparked a self-inflicted crime wave.

As the government forged ahead with watering down Victoria’s bail laws, Andrews was warned that crime would “go through the roof”.

This eventually became a major political headache.

Paterson believes he and Patton’s “frank” feedback to the Andrews and Allan governments cost them their careers.

It is understood Patton had been berated in private by the government over media articles that were critical of justice issues.

Patton received a talking-to about his comments in a 2023 Herald Sun article about police being able to detain children aged 10 to 13 when the age of responsibility was lifted to 14 “in the community interest”.

Neil Paterson gave ‘frank’ feedback to the Andrews and Allan governments Picture: Ian Currie

Another article in The Age in 2024, quoting one of his deputy commissioners, Ross Guenther, on the benefits of a justice summit to discuss reform also riled Spring St.

Guenther was the first to go in December.

But Patton and Paterson continued to lobby the government to clamp down on crime.

The Herald Sun revealed last week Patton had presented a seven-point plan to toughen Victoria’s bail response to the Allan government only weeks before he and Paterson were shown the door.

A central focus of Paterson’s complaint to IBAC, lodged on Friday, is whether the Allan government plotted to clear the top ranks of police because of the forthright advice they had given, and because they often refused to do media with the politicians.

The government’s softening on a suite of law and order issues, particularly bail laws, sparked a self-inflicted crime wave.

Paterson says IBAC has the power to probe whether the government approached Nugent before wielding the axe on their careers.

He believes an analysis of phone calls and emails between government figures is warranted.

The probe could also extend to Guenther’s contract not being renewed.

An investigation by the Herald Sun can detail the sequence of events that led to the carnage atop Victoria Police.

In a pre-planned response to 12,000 police members’ vote of “no confidence’’ on February 14, Patton had been lined up to speak on the ABC and 3AW drivetime slots after the poll concluded.

At the time, Patton was on a short stay in Surfers Paradise.

But after Patton went to air with the ABC, Minister Carbines phoned him warning: “I strongly advise you not to do any more media.”

An over-the-phone interview with 3AW was hastily cancelled.

Within the hour, the secretary for the Department of Premier and Cabinet, Jeremi Moule, was on the phone to Patton, telling him his contract would not be renewed.

Patton queried why it was Moule and not Carbines who delivered this news.

Extraordinarily, Moule told Patton: “You’re welcome to apply.”

It had been a rapid backflip by the government, which weeks earlier had promised Patton that his job was safe for another five years.

Patton told Moule he would be at work on Monday.

Department of Premier and Cabinet Jeremi Moule told Shane Patton his contract would not be renewed.

And he called an urgent meeting.

In a phone hook-up with his command team that weekend, he advised them of the shocking developments.

After further discussions with Moule, Patton quit on Sunday night.

Nugent, according to insiders, has told his executive command team he was approached to take on Patton’s role on the same day.

By Tuesday, he was at police headquarters in Spencer St.

Nugent’s return as Chief Commissioner came after a three-year stint running Emergency Management Victoria.

Sources say he had taken the job at EMV after being encouraged to leave Victoria Police by Patton, the man he was now replacing.

His first order of business was to call for Victoria’s broken bail laws to be remedied.

Allan then finally came to the party, saying publicly that the government had got bail laws wrong.

On Tuesday, her government was spruiking how it would now be introducing the “toughest” bail laws in Australia into parliament.

Originally published as Neil Paterson believes he and Shane Patton’s ‘frank’ feedback to the Andrews and Allan governments cost them their careers