Head of State Service reveals number of public servants still suspended after child sex abuse allegations

The head of Tasmania’s State Service has revealed to a parliamentary committee that numerous employees remain suspended due to allegations of child sexual abuse.

Ninety state servants have been suspended in Tasmania since October 2020 as a result of allegations of child sexual abuse, with 35 remaining under investigation.

Thirty-five Tasmanian public servants remain suspended from duty as a result of allegations of child sexual abuse, a parliamentary committee has heard.

On Thursday, Premier Jeremy Rockliff and Department of Premier and Cabinet (DPAC) secretary Kathrine Morgan-Wicks appeared before a joint parliamentary committee inquiring into the state government’s implementation of recommendations from the Commission of Inquiry into child sexual abuse in Tasmanian institutions.

The commission made 191 recommendations and 75 findings in August last year, uncovering rife abuse over a period of decades.

Premier Jeremy Rockliff and Department of Premier and Cabinet secretary Kathrine Morgan-Wicks at a Commission of Inquiry committee hearing. Picture: Nikki Davis-Jones

Ms Morgan-Wicks said 90 state servants had been suspended since October 2020, with 35 of these remaining under investigation and therefore not in the workplace.

She said the suspension figures were cumulative and comprised both historical and contemporary allegations.

“I can also advise that all allegations have been reported to the relevant authorities, including Tasmania Police and the Registrar for the Registration to Work with Vulnerable People,” Ms Morgan-Wicks said.

The government has appointed a Joint Referral Review Team (JRRT) to examine the actions of state agencies in relation to concerns raised by the commission.

The JRRT is looking into notices received by agencies under Section 34A of the Commissions of Inquiry Act, which gives the commission power to refer matters to authorities if it identifies potential breaches of the law.

The DPAC boss said the review team had confirmed the identities of 214 “persons of interest”, of which 161 were referred to in Section 34A notices and 149 were alleged to have committed child abuse, either sexual or physical.

Commissioners Leah Bromfield, Marcia Neave and Robert Benjamin deliver Commission of Inquiry closing statements in Hobart. Picture: ABC/pool

Twenty-nine were current state servants as at August 17 this year, 71 were former state servants, 49 had never worked for the State Service, and 12 were deceased. Among these 29 individuals, seven were found not to have breached the State Service Code of Conduct and were cleared to return to work.

One was determined to have breached the code, was sanctioned, and returned to work, while another had a breach identified and remains suspended while a sanction is finalised.

Fourteen of the 29 current employees identified through the Section 34A notices are currently suspended and remain under investigation. Two of them were not state servants at the time of the allegations and their matters had been referred to the relevant authorities, Ms Morgan-Wicks said.

Four of the 29 state servants remained “under assessment”.

Mr Rockliff said the government had implemented 44 of the 191 recommendations from the commission so far.

“If we are to make real and meaningful change in this state for children, we must work with urgency, but also need to take the time to get it right,” he said.

He also announced the government had improved the procedures underpinning employment direction 5, which enables the investigation and determination of whether a state servant has breached the Code of Conduct.

Originally published as Head of State Service reveals number of public servants still suspended after child sex abuse allegations