Calls for Brett Sutton to ‘resign’ over advice that forced a business to collapse

There is a reason the face of Victoria’s Covid response, Brett Sutton, is trending on Twitter. And it is not good for the Andrews government.

Just weeks from Victoria’s election, a number of social media pundits and government critics are calling for the face of the Andrews government’s Covid-19 response to resign.

They are not being critical of his handling of the pandemic.

Instead, they have been stirred into a frenzy by a program that aired on the Nine Network on Monday night that claimed the state’s chief health officer Professor Brett Sutton made an unnecessarily hasty decision that cost dozens of jobs and forced a longstanding business to collapse.

Prof Sutton has been criticised over a decision he made as acting chief health officer in February, 2019.

The acting CHO was responding to the death of an elderly woman at Knox Private Hospital.

Listeriosis was suspected as contributing to her death and the catering company I Cook Foods was blamed after a slug was allegedly found in a factory.

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Chief health officer Professor Brett Sutton made a decision that led to a catering business collapsing. Picture: Andrew Henshaw/NCA NewsWire

Prof Sutton made an urgent public health announcement that the caterer was to destroy ten tonnes of food products because “potentially thousands of people have been exposed”.

The decision would cost dozens of jobs and lead to the company’s collapse.

On Monday night’s episode of Channel Nine’s Under Investigation, host Liz Hayes outlined a number of claims about the handling of the saga that will put more pressure of Prof Sutton and Premier Daniel Andrews.

One of the key issues is that Prof Sutton erroneously identified I Cook Foods as the sole provider of food products to the hospital where the woman died.

That, he later admitted, was a mistake.

Former Knox Council health inspector Ray Christy, who investigated case, told Hayes there were multiple suppliers.

“Why focus on the one supplier?” Christy asked. “When I knew, (having) been to the hospital kitchen in the past, that there are several suppliers of food products.”

At a Parliamentary inquiry in 2021, Prof Sutton apologised.

“When I previously addressed the inquiry, I erroneously referred to I Cook being Knox Private Hospital’s sole caterer,” he said.

Victorian chief health officer Professor Brett Sutton. Picture: Ian Currie/NCA NewsWire

“This is what was initially understood and had been told to me. I have since been informed that subsequent information provided by Mr Christy indicated that this was incorrect, and I do apologise for any confusion caused.”

Under Investigation also revealed on Monday that the CEO of Dandenong Council, which ultimately made the decision to shut down the catering business, was also the director of a rival catering company.

At the time John Bennie told the acting CHO in a telephone call about the conflict of interest – his role as director of Community Chef.

The Nine program interviewed former NSW Supreme Court judge Anthony Whealy KC who said: “The fact that the CEO of the Council is in a position with Community Chef is inexplicable to my mind, since the Council has the job of overseeing Community Chef and its operations.”

The owner of I Cook Foods told an inquiry last year that the decision that ultimately ruined his business was driven by a lack of evidence.

Ian Cook claimed a second company investigated over the death of an elderly man in similar circumstances had been treated differently.

Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews. Picture: Ian Wilson/NCA NewsWire

Mr Cook said one of the company’s meals retrieved from a freezer at the man’s home was found to contain listeria and later was found in the kitchen of the provider.

He said the decision to let that firm stay open was at odds with the treatment of his company by authorities.

“They were told case closed, no more investigation,” he said.

“My business has never contributed to the death of anyone. Why was I Cook Foods treated so differently?”

Mr Cook is running as an independent candidate for the seat of Mulgrave at the November 26 election.

The seat is currently held by Premier Daniel Andrews.

Prof Sutton’s name was trending on Twitter on Monday night as hundreds of people expressed their outrage.

“The same person who made the decision to ruin that family business was making decisions for over 6 million Victorians. And they wonder why people are angry,” one person wrote.