Chris Eccles quits after hotel quarantine phone records revealed
Premier Daniel Andrews says he was “shocked” to hear his right-hand man Chris Eccles’ phone records show he spoke to former chief commissioner Graham Ashton for two minutes during the six-minute period being probed by the hotel quarantine inquiry. Now Victorian Labor MPs are turning on the Premier, saying he “must resign”.
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The Andrews Goverment is in turmoil with its top bureaucrat resigning in disgrace and demands for key ministers and officials to be grilled again by the hotel quarantine inquiry.
Chris Eccles, who earnt more than $500,000 a year as the head of the Department of Premier and Cabinet, quit after it was revealed he phoned Graham Ashton in a critical six-minute period when the former police chief is said to have been told private security would guard the hotels.
The sudden resignation brought an end to the 35-year career of the public service veteran who ran departments in NSW and South Australia before heading to Victoria.
The inquiry probing the hotel quarantine program requested the phone records of senior figures within the Andrews government on Saturday — only after revelations from the Sunday Herald Sun and Sky News.
Mystery has surrounded a six-minute period on March 27 — while the program was being set up — which was bookended by two texts sent by Mr Ashton.
He first texted Mr Eccles at 1.16pm asking whether police would guard the hotels, before messaging AFP boss Reece Kershaw at 1.22pm to say that he had been advised that “private security will be used”.
The shocking revelation that Mr Eccles spoke to Mr Ashton in this window has raised major concerns that the Premier’s own department was either involved in the decision to contract the work to security guards or is aware of who made the call.
“I am absolutely certain I did not convey to Mr Ashton any decision regarding the use of private security as I was unaware any such decision had been made, and I most certainly had not made such a decision myself,” Mr Eccles said in a statement. “However, in the circumstances, and with the heightened level of focus on this issue, I do not want a focus on me to in any way undermine the extraordinary work of the public sector as it continues to respond to unprecedented challenges of 2020.”
In a private note to colleagues, made public on Monday, Mr Eccles admitted the department’s pandemic response “hasn’t always been perfect”.
“Rightly the actions of senior public service leaders have been scrutinised to determine what we might have done better,” he said.
Mr Andrews said he was “shocked” after learning Mr Eccles had phoned Mr Ashton.
“I believe he (Chris Eccles) has made the right choice (to resign),” the Premier said.
“It was not a matter of me having to instruct him, he said his position was not tenable.”
A government spokesman said Mr Eccles had advised the Premier late last year he was intending to retire midway through 2020 but decided to stay on because of the coronavirus pandemic.
However, last month the government confirmed Mr Eccles had renewed his contract for another five years.
Mr Eccles is the second person to resign over the hotel program, following former health minister Jenny Mikakos last month.
On Monday several Labor MPs, speaking anonymously, said it was time for Mr Andrews to stand aside so the government could “restore integrity”, although there is no plan afoot to topple him from the top job.
“It’s now clear the Premier must resign,” one Labor MP told the Herald Sun.
“He and Chris Eccles are joined at the hip. We have had this charade of an inquiry for a month now, people have been locked up and 800 people have died — it’s time for him to go or the 71 people in the Labor caucus to act.” Ministers stood by Mr Andrews, with one saying his position was “solid”.
Opposition Leader Michael O’Brien — who will this week move a motion of no-confidence in the Premier — said the revelations about Mr Eccles’ evidence cast doubt over the entire inquiry.
“You’ve got to ask how many other people who gave evidence at that inquiry just didn’t tell the truth,” he said.
“That’s why it’s so important that these people be brought back to answer questions, Chris Eccles, Andrew Crisp, Daniel Andrews, Jenny Mikakos. They’re all talking at odds with each other, none of them are giving us the straight story and Victorians deserve ... the truth.”
Sacked Labor MP Adem Somyurek said it was time for the Premier to take full responsibility.
“This is the time when someone needs to give Dan “the collective (government) is bigger than the individual speech” and ask him to admit full responsibility as the decision maker otherwise the government is driving off a massive cliff and taking down lots of good MPs with it,” he tweeted.
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