Border Force Australia boss Roman Quaedvlieg sacked by Governor-General Peter Cosgrove
SIDELINED Border Force boss Roman Quaedvlieg has been sacked today by the Governor-General Sir Peter Cosgrove during a meeting of the Federal Executive Council in Canberra. Read the document detailing his grounds for termination
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SIDELINED Border Force boss Roman Quaedvlieg has been sacked today by the Governor-General Sir Peter Cosgrove during a meeting of the Federal Executive Council in Canberra.
The decision to terminate Mr Quaedvlieg’s $618,000-a-year contract is likely to lead to an unfair dismissal battle, with the Border Force Commissioner vehemently denying he was in a relationship with his current girlfriend at the time she got a job in his organisation at Sydney Airport in December 2016.
The Daily Telegraph exclusively revealed last month the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet Secretary Martin Parkinson’s report into Mr Quaedvlieg, 52, found he breached the public service Code of Conduct over his relationship with his younger girlfriend.
READ THE TERMINATION DOCUMENT
The report, which was completed in January, included intimate and salacious exchanges between Mr Quaedvlieg and his girlfriend before she started working for the organisation.
Dr Parkinson’s report examined whether the 52-year-old improperly influenced her employment prospects and whether he properly declared and disclosed the existence of the relationship.
After reviewing Dr Parkinson’s report, the Attorney-General Christian Porter has formally recommended Mr Quaedvlieg’s employment be terminated.
Mr Quaedvlieg issued a statement confirming that he had been terminated at 2.55pm.
He said a statement of grounds for his termination was not made available to him prior to being tabled in parliament this afternoon.
“However, I have consistently maintained my strong denial of those particularised grounds over the lengthy duration of this inquiry, and I continue to maintain those denials.”
Mr Quaedvlieg said he was given a “short opportunity” to resign before he was pushed but “chose not to do that as it wa tantamount to a concession of culpability, which I strenuously deny.”
“I also have previously made a number of observations in relation to the inquiry processes and I intend to pursue these more formally in the relevant forums. I will now take some time to fully consider my options.”
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Mr Porter’s review was understood to be on the agenda today at a meeting of the Executive Council. Only the Governor-General could sack Mr Quaedvlieg from his statutory position of Commissioner. Sir Peter is understood to have returned from a trip for the meeting, which was be held later than usual at midmorning.
Senior government sources told The Daily Telegraph it would have been highly unusual for the Federal Executive Council not to accept the Attorney-General’s advice.
A spokeswoman for the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet said that there would be no comment on the timing or agenda of the meeting in line with usual practice.
The investigation into Mr Quaedvlieg has spanned 10 months. The powerful anti-corruption agency, Australian Commission for Law Enforcement Integrity, is understood to have accessed the salacious communications between Mr Quaedvlieg and his girlfriend during the course of its investigation.
It made no corruption findings but is understood to have passed the information from its investigation onto Dr Parkinson, who examined it for any breaches of the public service Code of Conduct.
THE RISE AND FALL OF ROMAN QUAEDVLIEG
● Appointed as the first Border Force commissioner in 2015
● Investigation begins in May 2017 over allegations he helped a junior staffer, with whom he had a relationship, secure work at Sydney Airport.
● Goes on paid leave while the investigation is underway, earning roughly $500,000 while off work.
● His conduct was the subject of two confidential reports, one from the corruption watchdog and one from the head of the prime minister’s department.
● Quaedvlieg consistently denied allegations made against him.
WHAT THE INVESTIGATION FOUND
● He modified policies to advantage a particular candidate for Border Force employment, reportedly his girlfriend.
● He made a false statement to now-Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton about his personal relationships, and failed to disclose a significant change in his personal life.
● The relevant conduct went beyond an isolated error of judgment and ultimately undermined his capacity to continue in his role.
● He engaged in acts of misbehaviour and conduct inconsistent with his affirmation.