Editorial: Valid interest in crash

TO argue there is no public interest in releasing a police report into a serious collision involving Premier Daniel Andrews and his wife misses the point.

Premier Daniel Andrews and his wife, Catherine, have been cleared of any wrongdoing but the community must have access to the police report. Picture: David Crosling

TO argue there is no public interest in releasing a police report into a serious collision involving Premier Daniel Andrews and his wife misses the point.

While Catherine Andrews was driving the taxpayer-funded Ford Territory at the time of the crash, Mr Andrews was leader of the state Opposition. Now, of course, he leads the state.

The community must be given access to the 38-page police report and notes to ensure investigations are completed fully and professionally where high-profile public figures, particularly parliamentarians, are involved.

We would urge all available information is released for the sake of public confidence in the process.

There is evidence the Victoria Police investigation was something less than comprehensive, given there was no breath analysis of Catherine Andrews at the time, a breach of standard procedure. The actions of two police officers who attended the crash scene in Blairgowrie were investigated by the Professional Standards Command and they were handed workplace guidance warnings for failing to follow procedure.

Mrs Andrews was at the wheel of the Ford when it collided with a teenage boy on a bicycle about 1.30pm on January 7, 2013.

The 15-year-old was taken to the Royal Children’s Hospital, where he underwent surgery to stem internal bleeding, also suffering a punctured lung, broken ribs and cuts.

Obviously, it was a significant incident and the injuries to the young victim were serious.

It is almost five years since the Herald Sun first revealed details of the crash. At that time Mr Andrews’s office attempted to ignore it by refusing to release a statement. His office later conceded it was a mistake not to comment at the time, and then confirmed Mr Andrews was a passenger in the vehicle. The fact it occurred in a taxpayer-funded vehicle adds weight to an argument for full disclosure.

Mr Andrews on Tuesday denied he had sought to stop the release of investigation documents into the crash under a Freedom of Information request. While it is common for government agencies to contact the subjects of FOI applications for their view on releasing material, Mr Andrews indicated he had not requested the documents remain confidential.

The term “public interest” is not specifically defined in law, but its meaning is informed by a range of court cases in which material has been sought, views have been expressed or information published.

The Australian Law Reform Commission has said public interest matters included “freedom of the media to investigate, and inform and comment on matters of public concern and importance; the proper administration of government and open justice.” Certainly the case at hand involving Mr Andrews and his wife meets those thresholds.

Added to that public interest is the untested allegations made in parliament by Liberal Christine Fyffe last week of a recording supposedly held by the United Firefighters Union’s Peter Marshall relating to the incident. Labor MPs described those claims as grubby and desperate and, certainly, Mrs Andrews and the Premier have been cleared by police of any wrongdoing.

But the fact remains, full disclosure is in the public interest to ensure that no individual is above the law and all are exposed equally to comprehensive investigation, regardless of standing..

Defence Minister Marise Payne has confirmed Australian Defence Force mobile training teams will be established to help defeat IS and Maute after the Marawi siege.

NEW FRONT AGAINST ISLAMIC STATE

IT has been a long 16 years since the so-called “war on terror” began in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks in the US.

Australia has played a significant and consistent military role in the fight against militant jihadism ever since — most notably in Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria.

As a nation, we have endured six terrorism incidents on home soil in that period, but more than a dozen significant plots have been disrupted since 2014 when the attack alert level was elevated to “probable”.

We know terrorism remains a real threat, both here and overseas, and Australians understand the long-term resolve needed to defeat that threat.

Now, Australia is involved in yet another front — this time in South East Asia. RAAF surveillance aircraft were first deployed to the skies above the Philippines to assist in the campaign against a burgeoning Islamic State presence earlier this year. Defence Minister Marise Payne on Tuesday confirmed Australian Defence Force mobile training teams, made up of at least 80 soldiers, will be established on the ground to help defeat IS and its local offshoot, Maute, after the Marawi siege on the southern island of Mindanao.

The spread of IS to the Philippines, including fighters fleeing Iraq and Syria, represents a direct threat to the region and to Australia.

Security across our northern reaches is fundamental to protect against emboldened domestic threats and important trade routes through the area.

IS’s destruction in Raqqa this month signals a major defeat for the terror group, and it cannot be allowed any foothold in Asia.