Page 13: Matthew Guy’s cancelled chief of staff, Mitch Catlin, opens up on long road back

As he walked the Tan weeks after he “resigned” as Matthew Guy’s chief of staff, one moment made it clear to Mitch Catlin just how far he’d fallen.

There have been many moments of pain for Mitch Catlin since he was cancelled, but there’s one in particular he can’t shake.

A few months after his life and career had been blown up following his forced resignation as Victorian Opposition Leader Matthew Guy’s chief of staff, Catlin was out for a walk around Melbourne’s famed Tan Track.

He’d been struggling to leave the house since the scandal erupted in August 2022, but on this particular day he’d forced himself to get out for some much-needed sunshine and clean air. Instead he got another brutal reminder of how far he’d fallen.

Speaking for the first time since he was cleared of any wrongdoing following an IBAC investigation, Catlin reveals the dark times he’s experienced since.

“Initially I couldn’t leave the house without panic attacks,” he says.

“There was even one media outlet making it look like I was a Kardashian and reporting where I’d been spotted.

“About four months after it all happened I was walking the Tan, and of course I had my hood up but I mean at 6ft 5’ it’s very hard for me to hide.

“So I walked past someone who I was in business with at the time and they put their head down and pretended they didn’t see me because they couldn’t bear to be anywhere near me. “Imagine what I had to go through after that happened.”

Catlin resigned after front page headlines screeched about the Liberal Party asking for a $100,000 donation from party donor and richlister Jonathan Munz to be made to Catlin’s private marketing business to bump up his salary.

Months out from the state election, Catlin says it was part of a smear campaign aimed toward ousting then Opposition Leader Matthew Guy.

Mitch Catlin has survived many dark days since his ousting from the Liberal party. Picture: Jake Nowakowski

It was no secret the Victorian Liberal Party had been in tatters with in fighting and finger pointing, not to mention the fallout following Tim Smith’s drink driving fiasco after he barrelled his Jaguar into the fence of a house in Kew after one to many mojitos.

It was also no secret Smith, an angry injured bear, had been looking for blood.

The fallout was quick and brutal.

He walked into Liberal Party headquarters on Collins St the day the story broke on August 2, 2022, for a meeting with Guy and Liberal Party executives.

Catlin left having “resigned.” Because someone always has to fall on the sword.

“I thought my life was over and many people in the room that day were clearly responsible for that. They have to live with that,” he says.

“The one regret I have, and I was in no place to do it at the time was stand up for myself more. I was literally in a complete state of disarray so the whole day is a blur. But I wish I’d have had the skill and ability to stand up more. I should not have put up with toxic Liberal Party shit,” he says.

The Victoria Electoral Commission publicly referred the Liberal Party to the anti-corruption watchdog over a potential breach of the state’s donation laws just days before the November election.

Grilled for up to six hours, IBAC later cleared Catlin of any wrongdoing.

“I was exonerated.”

But the damage was already done.

“It was terrifying, gut wrenching and also unnecessary, because it should never have got to that point.

“I wasn’t a politician. I was a staffer and I became the victim of a political machination.”

“I was cancelled, but I was cancelled for no reason. It’s the total crux of it.”

That he was a victim and scapegoat of an agenda to oust his boss Guy from the leadership - we all know politics is a dirty game - was perhaps the most bitter pill to swallow.

“I was cancelled because people had personal gripes against Matthew. That’s in essence what happened. Everyone else is doing fine in this except me and I didn’t do anything wrong. That’s hard.”

Catlin with former treasurer Josh Frydenberg. Picture: Sarah Matray

Catlin, 51, immediately retreated from public life.

“I mean, I had no choice but to in effect disappear off the face of the earth,” he says. “Because I wasn’t . . . I was unable to function as a normal human being.”

Then his mother Nola, tragically died, which further sent him spiralling into the depths of depression.

“Soon after it all happened, my mum passed away so I didn’t get to spend the final months with her because of what I was dealing with,” Catlin explains.

“I did nothing wrong but the narrative was beyond comprehension, I literally had to disappear, I had to change my phone, change my email.

“I had to almost change my identity because of what those people did to me.”

Work has always been part of Catlin’s identity. After a stint as a TV reporter working for Seven, he moved into the corporate world becoming one of the city’s chief spinners, king makers and movers and shakers.

Working for Myer in the golden era, he was the man who put Jennifer Hawkins in the spotlight. Looking after many major events in Melbourne, he was a star-maker and responsible for some of the Birdcage’s most fabulous moments. From Dame Edna Everage throwing her gladdies to the crowd, to Liza Minnelli being carried up into the marquee stairs by her burly dancers — “I don’t do stairs dah-ling.”

Later moving on to Swisse, he was instrumental in signing ambassadors from Cadel Evans to Nicole Kidman and helping make the vitamin giant a household name.

When Covid struck, he, like many others, became vocally disheartened by the draconian lockdowns.

Wanting to make a change, he stepped into politics to become Guy’s chief spinner.

“I felt deeply about Victoria,” he says.

“For me it was always about policy, not politics. I believe the state was heading in the wrong direction and needed new policy and thought this was one way to do that.”

Catlin with Matthew Guy (left) and David Southwick. Picture: Tim Carrafa

Two and a half years later, that passion and vitality has gone.

“As someone who was very passionate about change and helping other people, I couldn’t be further from engaging in that political process anymore.”

He credits two friends for saving his life after they hired him for part time work after the fallout.

“It’s almost impossible for me to get a job because of Google. Anyone who would want to hire me, regardless of my skills and experience, they just read this scandal that I was a victim of. I’ve had to work so hard to try to accept myself and the situation when I did nothing wrong.

“If it wasn’t for two mates who gave me some part time work to readjust months afterwards I... I don’t know. They saved my life.”

Each day is now a step forward as he tries to regain a sense of normality.

Always an ideas man, he has created and launched Australia Life, a quarterly magazine featuring local stories, businesses, people, products and places.

“Ironically there isn’t anything like it in Australia,” he says.

“The orange-haired, fake-tanned president in Washington is kind of doing a great deal to allow us to focus on ourselves. PM Anthony Albanese has been talking this up significantly and it’s Australia Made week just now,” he says.

“But this came out of necessity because I can’t get a job. It’s a case of if I don’t try and do something myself right now people won’t employ me. I don’t get paid for this yet, it’s a passion project to try and put myself into a positive mind frame and support many of my friends and family who have supported me and who have Australian made businesses.

“So it really does in effect fit into why I wanted to go into policy and change.”

“I have a sense of devastation and almost blankness about politics now.

“My life has never been the same since, and it won’t ever be the same again.”