THE Office of Police Integrity grilled Chief Commissioner Christine Nixon in a private hearing over her free Qantas trip and demanded she issue yesterday's embarrassing apology that she should not have accepted the flight.
Ms Nixon was officially summoned to a confidential OPI session on Thursday, where director Michael Strong made it clear to her that she had breached the police internal code of conduct on accepting gifts.
She was told that unless she apologised and agreed to make a repayment there would be a protracted investigation into the free flights fiasco — a controversy that would cloud her last few months in office.
The Age can reveal that the OPI began its investigation after it received a complaint from Qantas, which had provided the trip for Ms Nixon and her husband, John Becquet, a former executive with the airline.
Ms Nixon and Mr Becquet were guests with VIPs and media on the first flight of the airline's new A380 super jumbo from Melbourne to Los Angeles on October 20.
Four days later, Ms Nixon denied her position had led her to receive the offer, saying she had taken the flight to accompany her husband. "At no stage was this travel undertaken by me as part of my role as Chief Commissioner, nor was I representing Victoria Police," she said.
But Qantas told the OPI the offer was made to Ms Nixon because of her position as Chief Commissioner.
Qantas contacted the OPI after it received a series of complaints from former executives asking why they had not been offered the same flight.
ENDS
Finally, media who've been briefed on Ms Nixon's award today report that it's due in large part to her purported role in recruiting women to the force.
Ms Nixon says changing the face of Victoria Police remains one of her proudest achievements in a long policing career. “I was always keen for people to understand women could do that job,” she said.
“I gave a speech when I was sworn in and said don’t underestimate women. We can set standards and do the work … just ask any mother.
“There is a lovely line that says ‘If you can’t see it, you can’t be it’. For women to see me in a role like that was important.”
ENDS
I joined the Victoria Police in 1986.
Here's our squad photo.
There were 25 of us - 10 women.
That's an actual recruitment result of 40% women - back in 1986, long before Christine Nixon came on the scene to 'change the face of policing'.
This award is a dreadful slap in the face for fair dinkum working police everywhere.