Victoria's top public servant Chris Eccles resigns after phone records revealed
Victoria's most senior public servant Chris Eccles has resigned from his position of Secretary of the Department of Premier and Cabinet effective immediately.
Mr Eccles' resignation comes after detailed phone records requested by the Board of the Hotel Quarantine Inquiry showed the former secretary called former police chief Graham Ashton at 1.17pm on March 27.
Mr Eccles had earlier given evidence to the inquiry that he did not recall if he had telephoned the former Chief Commissioner.
However, Mr Eccles insists he did not "convey to Mr Ashton any decision regarding the use of private security" during the phone call.
"The telephone records do not in any way demonstrate that I, or indeed anyone else in DPC made a decision that private security be used in the Hotel Quarantine Program," he said in a statement today.
"I am absolutely certain I did not convey to Mr Ashton any decision regarding the use of private security as I was unaware any such decision had been made, and I most certainly had not made such a decision myself."
The former secretary had earlier given evidence to the Hotel Quarantine Inquiry that he did not recall if he had telephoned the former Chief Commissioner.
"There has been much commentary and speculation about whether I or anyone else at DPC spoke to Mr Ashton during that narrow timeframe on 27 March. It is now evident I did," he said.
"I gave evidence that while I did not recall whether I telephoned former Chief Commissioner Graham Ashton in response to a text message he sent me at 1:16pm on 27 March 2020, I may have.
"Further, I gave evidence that although I did not recall telephoning Mr Ashton at that particular time, it was my normal practice to get back to the then Chief Commissioner when he contacted me.
"Under cross examination I provided an answer to a related question that was inconsistent with the totality of my evidence and the meaning I was intending to convey. This was not my intention, as I believe was made very clear by my written statement and further oral evidence."
https://www.9news.com.au/national/victorias-top-public-servant-chris-eccles-resigns-following-hotel-quarantine-bungle/f59518de-c582-469c-b960-4b574de6c128
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