Victoria’s education chief exits after anti-corruption report deepens pressure on ex-Andrews staff
Victoria’s public service shake-up has claimed another senior figure, with Education Department secretary Tony Bates leaving his post after an anti-corruption report found he engaged in “serious and concerning conduct.” The move adds fresh pressure on Premier Ben Carroll as he continues clearing out senior staff from the Daniel Andrews era.
Carroll confirmed on Friday that Bates was no longer secretary of the Department of Education and would leave the public service. A replacement process is now under way. Bates had already taken leave after the Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission’s Operation Richmond report examined a closed-door pay deal struck with United Firefighters Union boss Peter Marshall.
A deal struck out of view
The IBAC investigation found Bates negotiated the arrangement at the request of then-premier Andrews and special minister of state Gavin Jennings, without the knowledge of the CFA or the emergency services minister. The report said the way the deal was handled shut out relevant ministers, the CFA and other parts of government.
IBAC concluded that Bates, Jennings and Andrews behaved contrary to government policy, procedures, convention and their respective codes of conduct. That finding has become politically costly far beyond the immediate dispute over firefighters’ pay. It has reopened questions about how decisions were made inside Victoria’s Labor government, and who was kept in the loop when they were taken.
For Carroll, the issue is as much about standards as it is about personnel. “I read the IBAC Operation Richmond back to front, and I made it very clear that integrity …” he said on Friday, cutting off in remarks that signalled little tolerance for the conduct described in the report.
Another break from the Andrews years
Bates is the third Andrews-era public servant to be removed after the IBAC report, underlining how far the fallout has spread inside the Victorian bureaucracy. The premier’s decision to act comes as his government works through a broader reset, with senior appointments now being reviewed and replaced.
The shift matters because education is one of the state’s most visible portfolios, touching families, teachers and school communities across Victoria. In a system already under pressure from political turnover, leadership changes at the top can slow decision-making and unsettle departments that need continuity.
Victoria’s Labor government is already facing a rough political run, with divisions inside the party and a looming electoral test later this year. Cleanouts inside the public service can signal a determination to draw a line under the past. They can also deepen the sense that an era is ending.
For now, the focus turns to who Carroll appoints next — and whether more names emerge from the IBAC fallout before the government finishes its reset.
