Eligibility query over new role for Bush
Mike Bush. PHOTO: ODT FILES
The appointment of a New Zealander to take charge of a troubled state police force has hit an unexpected speed bump — laws needed to clarify his eligibility.
Former New Zealand police commissioner Mike Bush was named Victoria's next chief commissioner earlier this month.
He was due to take over on June 27, but the Victorian government is scrambling to ensure he is eligible for the job.
It moved to an urgent amendment yesterday to ward off any potential legal challenges stemming from his appointment as a non-Australian citizen.
The state government's upper house leader Jaclyn Symes said she did not learn of the change until Wednesday night.
"There is some common law principles that suggest that there might be an issue for appointing a chief commissioner that is not an Australian citizen," she told Parliament.
"That is not definitive, but to ensure that there are no issues, no challenges, it's something that we should fix."
It is the latest chapter in a fiasco linked to the role after the sudden exits of Shane Patton and Rick Nugent.
Victoria Police was first thrust into turmoil in February, when a no-confidence vote from officers cost Mr Patton his job.
Mr Nugent became acting chief and expressed interest in making the move permanent before throwing in the towel in April.
Premier Jacinta Allan would not reveal the date the government discovered the eligibility issue, saying it was while sorting paperwork for the appointment.
She said the government was changing the law out of an abundance of caution.
"It's an archaic law [and] it's also out of step with modern Victoria and the state we are today, where we want to attract the best and brightest from around the world," she said.
The Bill will not be able to pass the lower house until June 17 at the earliest, 10 days before Mr Bush is due to start.
He retired from policing in New Zealand in 2020, after joining in 1978 and spending his final six years in the top job. — AAP
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