Karen Webb defends use of police watchdog to root out whistleblowers

NSW Police Commissioner Karen Webb appears to have suggested she was using an internal police investigative body to root out whistleblowers, saying it was its “job”.

NSW’s top cop Karen Webb appears to have suggested she will use the police force’s internal investigating body to root out whistleblowers in the force.

Commissioner Webb was asked in front of media on Tuesday: “You said you are going to use the professional standards command to root out leakers. Are you using scant police resources to weed out whistleblowers?”

In response Ms Webb said that was what the command was supposed to do.

“The professional standards command was established for that and certainly that’s their job, that’s what they were established to do,” she said.

In response to questions about the use of the internal command for this purpose, a spokesperson for Police Minister Yasmin Catley said “decisions regarding what the Professional Standards Command investigates is a matter for senior police.”

NSW Police Commissioner Karen Webb. Picture: Newswire

The Daily Telegraph later went back to Commissioner Webb to ask if she drew a distinction between members of the force leaking sensitive information and whistleblowers.

Ms Webb did not respond to comment before deadline.

Ms Webb told The Daily Telegraph last week she would use the investigating body to find detractors in the force leaking sensitive information to the press.

“It does need to stop. I’m happy to be accountable and I do think those faceless cowards also need to be accountable,” she said at the time.

The statement comes after a week of sustained criticism over taxpayer expenditure on gin gifts and failure to disclose her personal relationship with the supplier.

NSW Premier Chris Minns with Police Commissioner Karen Webb. Picture: NCA NewsWire

The allegations were released in parliament by crossbench MP Rod Roberts as part of a series of questions on notice for the police force, tabled in parliament on Tuesday.

At the time Mr Roberts said the allegations had been brought to his attention by members of the NSW Police force.

Ms Webb still denied she misled the Law Enforcement Conduct Commission (LECC) over her personal relationship with the supplier of large orders of gin on the taxpayer dollar, which she later gave as gifts.

Despite saying she had discussed the purchase of alcohol with distiller Michael Hope prior to spending more than $11,000 on gin and Tasmanian oak boxes, Ms Webb informed the LECC she did not realise she knew the supplier until much later.

Ms Webb has since said she would not have approved the cost of 200 Tasmanian oak boxes had she realised the price at the time.

Ms Webb said the LECC, which investigated the first order of 50 bottles of gin had also been made aware of an order of a second 50 bottles that have since been cancelled.

“They are aware of the second 50 and when I became aware last week, I notified them but they were already aware,” she said this morning.

Premier Chris Minns defended the embattled commissioner over the police force’s gift-giving practices.

“As the police commissioner has said, she’s not going to continue that practice and on reflection that’s not the kind of police force she wants to run, she’s thought about what kind of gifts to give to visiting dignitaries,” he told 2GB on Tuesday.

“In retrospect, it wasn’t the right call and I think that’s been acknowledged by the police commissioner.”

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