MFB fire chief Dan Stephens offered to resign after getting seven speeding fines in month

MELBOURNE’S new fire chief Dan Stephens offered to resign after getting seven speeding fines in a month travelling from Melbourne to Geelong.

THE new head of the Metropolitan Fire Brigade offered to resign after getting seven speeding fines in a month travelling from Melbourne to Geelong.

MFB Boss Dan Stephens, who moved from Liverpool in the UK to Melbourne in May, told 3AW he had received the tickets travelling along the M1.

“I want to be absolutely clear, I take full responsibility for my actions there is no justification whatsoever for this,” Mr Stephens told Neil Mitchell this morning.

BANDIDOS: MEET THE MEN BEHIND THE TATTS

TRADE STABBED TO DEATH IN DOVETON

SEE APPLE’S NEW FED SQUARE HQ

Mr Stephens said he had offered his resignation over the speeding tickets but it had been rejected by the MFB board.

He said he was still adjusting to speed limits in Victoria.

Speed limits on UK motorways are 70 miles per hour, or 112km/h.

“Speeding is wrong, I have attended enough motor vehicle incidents to know that,” he said in a later statement.

“My actions have fallen well short of what is expected of me and I offer you my sincere apologies.

“I am in a position of responsibility and I’m very disappointed in myself.”

Mr Stephens had been caught at varying speeds on the M1 - the top speed 115km/h.

Dan Stephens says his last speeding ticket was three decades ago. Picture: The Australian

Mr Stephens revealed the first ticket arrived in the mail the first week of July and then he started receiving the others one after another.

“As soon as I realised I immediately contacted Vic Roads for verification and brought the matter to the attention of the MFB board and Victoria Police,” he said.

Mr Stephens said it was “his understanding” he will not lose his licence.

He said he had previously only had two speeding fines in the UK, the last about 28 years ago.

Mr Stephens has been in Australia — and in the role of MFB Chief — for a number of months.

The MFB Board president said: “While the Board understands the gravity of speeding and its impact on road safety, we do not believe Dan’s conduct warranted dismissal or acceptance of his resignation on this occasion.”

Mr Stephens’ appointment sparked a bizarre outburst from firebrand United Firefighters Union leader Peter Marshall, who went on to claim he had special deals with Premier Daniel Andrews.

Mr Marshall slammed Mr Stephens as a union buster in the UK.

But Mr Stephens told 3AW that they we’re developing a good relationship.

“He does an excellent job of representing his members and I would like to think we have a good relationship,” he said.

Mr Stephens most recently led the UK’s Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service, serving as Chief Fire Officer/Chief Executive Officer for more than six years before making the move to Melbourne.