Union lashes MP Frank Pangallo over anti-cop ‘campaign’ but still silent on allegations

MP Frank Pangallo has lashed a “gutless attack” on his staff after the police union claimed its embattled president Wade Burns had been targeted.

The Police Association has come out swinging in defence of the state’s cop secrecy act as pressure mounts against newly-appointed president Wade Burns, saying calls to review the laws would “ruin police officers and their families”.

On Tuesday, Deputy President Daryl Mundy lashed independent MP Frank Pangallo, who aired claims in parliament that Mr Burns had sexually assaulted a female colleague in 2017 – but remained silent on Mr Burns’ alleged conduct.

Mr Pangallo has responded in kind, labelling the Police Association’s statement a “gutless attack on me and my staff” and saying he “is not anti-cop, he is anti-bad cop”.

In a post shared to social media, Mr Mundy said the Police Complaints and Discipline Act – which prevents the disclosure of any information about a police officer under investigation for workplace matters – “protected police from injustice”.

Mr Mundy accused Mr Pangallo of “effectively running a campaign to obliterate the act”.

“In the process, he has targeted the Police Association president … the media has accosted the president in the street and even turned up at his home with no regard for his young family,” Mr Mundy said.

“In all industries, people make mistakes, which are dealt with internally. They face reprimands or discipline and then make amends.

“But Pangallo wants the lives of police officers ripped apart by politicians and media identities.”

Mr Mundy said Mr Pangallo was supported by “tabloid media and just about every anti-police hate group” and said any changes to the act would make it “virtually impossible to attract new people to an occupation already dealing with a recruitment and retention crisis”.

Mr Mundy did not address the sexual assault allegations levelled against Mr Burns.

Mr Burns and the Police Association have not responded to multiple requests for comment by The Advertiser.

Police Association president Wade Burns outside the union headquarters. Picture: A Current Affair

Independent MP Frank Pangallo talking to the media. Picture: File

In parliament on Tuesday afternoon, Mr Pangallo labelled the PCD Act’s secrecy provisions “draconian” and labelled Mr Mundy’s statement “vapid, hysterical and inaccurate”.

He said his staff member Kim York, who filed a Fair Work complaint against the union which was later withdrawn, had been unjustly targeted in PASA’s response and had no influence on his “endeavours to get to the truth”.

“They are still serving police officers yet they behave like union thugs when delegates and members challenge their authority,” Mr Pangallo said.

“The members of the association deserve much better leadership than this lot and I urge them to make their votes count at the next election to remove them.”

Mr Pangallo issued a number of questions to Attorney-General Kyam Maher, including whether Police Commissioner Grant Stevens had officially approved Mr Burns’ secondment to undertake his duties as PASA president and when proposed amendments to the PCD Act would be introduced.

Mr Maher said the parliamentary Crime and Public Integrity Committee had conducted a review of police complaints processes and made a number of recommendations, which were being considered by the government.

However, he did not offer a timeline for when those recommendations, if any, would be put forward.

Mr Maher said he would pass on Mr Pangallo’s further questions to Police Minister Dan Cregan. 

In leaked correspondence sent to Police Association members on Tuesday, Mr Mundy said “despite the noise, absolutely nothing will distract the Police Association and its elected representatives from our focus and commitment”.

Mr Burns has previously told members he was never charged with assault of any kind and dismissed the allegations as a workplace matter, saying the accusations “do not reflect who I am either as a person or a leader”.