The New South Wales police commissioner, Karen Webb, has outlawed the practice of using taxpayer money to buy alcohol for gifts and hospitality after she controversially bought 50 bottles of high-end gin produced by one of her friends.
The 50 bottles were purchased at $85 a unit, totalling $4,250 worth of gin, on 10 November 2022. The former Coalition police minister Paul Toole was in cabinet at the time.
An investigation by the Law Enforcement Conduct Commission (Lecc) cleared Webb of serious misconduct but said she should have disclosed her association with the supplier of “Commissioner’s Gin”.
Webb had been under investigation by the police watchdog after it received an anonymous complaint that she had failed to declare a conflict of interest over the purchase.
While the Lecc said it was satisfied that overall the purchase was in accordance with policies and procedures, Webb has been under fire since the watchdog released its findings on Wednesday.
The police minister, Yasmin Catley, on Thursday admitted she had received one of the bottles after she was sworn in, a day after she said they had been bought as gifts for visiting dignitaries.
She said the bottle remained on the shelf in her office.
“I haven’t tried it, I’m not a gin drinker,” she told parliament.
The Coalition and some crossbench MPs have doggedly pursued the matter in parliament, causing another headache for the government after a year of missteps by Webb and Catley.
The NSW independent MP Rod Roberts used parliamentary privilege on Wednesday to allege Webb and her staff had consumed the gin themselves.
Webb distributed a statement on Wednesday night to quash what she said were “completely false” claims made under parliamentary privilege that the bottles were bought for personal and staff use.
“I have always acted honestly and in the best interest of the NSW Police Force and the people of NSW,” she said.
“To date, 24 bottles have been distributed as gifts or donated for charity purposes. I have not tasted the Commissioner’s Gin and to suggest the bottles were purchased for personal and staff use, is incorrect.”
On Thursday, Roberts, a known critic of Webb, questioned how long she would remain in the role.
“I don’t know how long Chris Minns can put up with this,” he told 2GB Radio.
“This commissioner unfortunately bounces from one disaster to another.”
Webb was criticised earlier this year for her handling of then serving officer Beau Lamarre’s alleged double murder of Sydney couple Jesse Baird and Luke Davies.
She was accused of taking too long to front the public after Lamarre was charged, deflecting media scrutiny to her deputy and using flippant language to describe the crimes.
Webb’s decision to part ways with four previous media heads in the space of two years also came under scrutiny, after it was revealed the changes led to almost $700,000 in termination payments.
