Supersized termination payouts for New South Wales public servants will be reviewed by the state government after it was revealed police had forked out almost $700,000 to remove three senior media officers since 2022.
The premier, Chris Minns, has ordered a review of the act that sets the rate of payouts after Guardian Australia revealed NSW police had paid out $687,000 in total to three dumped police media executives over the past two years.
Since the payouts, the police commissioner, Karen Webb, sacked a fourth controversial pick mid-appointment last month. He is also expected to receive a payout.
The highly paid roles include advising the commissioner on her public appearances and the force’s public engagement strategies.
Minns on Tuesday announced he had ordered a review of the Government Sector Employment Act, “particularly in relation to separation payments to senior public servants”.
“It’s public money, it’s taxpayer money and I can understand community concern about those separation payments,” he said.
Minns said the review was not intended to change the rates for the separation of police officers and teachers and nurses, but rather was aimed at the most senior public servants in the state.
“That’s appropriate and necessary,” he said.
“These are large amounts of money that have been handed to senior executives.
“Now, that’s not a knock on any agency head. They’ve obviously got to pick the team that they think can do the job and they’re limited by the regulations that are set in place by the government, but I’m concerned with the amount of money that’s going out the door.”
He promised to make the findings of the review public.
Among those paid out by NSW police was Grant Williams, who was made redundant in his role as executive director of NSW police’s public affairs branch soon after Webb became commissioner in early 2022.
Former television producer Alexandra Hodgkinson also received a payout, after serving as executive media adviser to Webb from February to December 2022.
The executive director of public affairs position was filled by former News Corp editor Liz Deegan in April 2023. Deegan was dismissed earlier this year following criticism of the media strategy in the aftermath of the alleged murders of Sydney couple Jesse Baird and Luke Davies.
The Guardian does not know how much of the $687,000 went to each of the three senior figures.
Deegan was set to be replaced by the former Network Seven producer Steve Jackson before Webb backflipped when questions about the appointment were raised when images of Jackson began circulating in the media industry in Sydney.
Jackson produced Seven’s Spotlight interview with Bruce Lehrmann. Seven paid more than $100,000 in rent for the former Liberal staffer in return for the exclusive interview which was last week discussed at length as part of Lehrmann’s defamation case.
A NSW police spokesperson said: “Termination payments are set by legislation. No further comment will be provided.”
