Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro has finally ordered an independent inquiry into executive appointments in the NT Police, despite claiming two days ago that she had no concerns about cronyism in the police force, with all executives appointed by disgraced commissioner Michael Murphy remaining in their roles while the inquiry is carried out.

Acting Police Commissioner Martin Dole will remain in the top role, as will Assistant Commissioner Peter Kennon, who was at the centre of the recruitment process investigated by the ICAC that found Mr Murphy mismanaged a conflict of interest in his appointment which amounted to “negligence and incompetence” and a misuse of public resources. Mr Murphy was placed on indefinite leave on Saturday night.

The scandal raised broader questions about how senior positions were filled by Mr Murphy. It was revealed on Monday that Mr Dole was also on the Kennon hiring panel, but has maintained he did not provide a reference for Mr Kennon and did nothing improper, however questions were also raised about his appointment last year to Deputy Commissioner.

The inquiry will be run through the Office of the Commissioner for Public Employment, headed by former Tasmanian Supreme Court Justice and acting-NT Justice Alan Blow. A date for completion was not provided.

Ms Finocchiaro made the announcement on Wednesday afternoon, following days of uncertainty while instability within the NT Police grew, which she previously did not acknowledge.

“We need this process to be undertaken so that everyone can move forward,” she said.

“It’s been a very troubling period, and what I can’t have is uncertainty in a police force who has a very big and important job to do.”

On Monday, Ms Finocchiaro said on Mix FM that she was not concerned about cronyism at the highest levels of the NT Police executive.

Ms Finocchiaro had rejected doing an immediate review into Mr Murphy’s hirings over the past 12 months, which included Mr Dole.

“I think that will all come out in the wash,” she said on Monday. “Right now, we’ve got to go through this first process [of terminating Murphy] and then ultimately move forward from there. We need business as usual.”

Asked then if she was concerned about systemic issues of hiring mates in the NT Police, Ms Finocchiaro said: “No, I’m not.”

She claimed on Wednesday that she was being “methodical” about the inquiry earlier in the week.

“It wasn’t off the table, I’ve just been methodically working through things,” she said. “We’ve now commenced that process of termination [of Murphy], which is very important and now we move forward.

“This independent inquiry will give certainty to the police, the community and the officers involved.

“I have spoken with Acting Police Commissioner Martin Dole, who supports the independent inquiry, and he has advised that relevant personnel will participate fully.”

Mr Dole also said on Monday that a review into Mr Murphy’s appointments was not necessary, despite being appointed by him.

The NT Independent reported earlier in the week that Mr Murphy mysteriously cancelled a recruitment process for the deputy commissioner role in late 2023, and later struck a new panel that appointed current Acting Commissioner Martin Dole in the deputy role, which he oversaw.

The applicants of the first panel were not provided with an explanation as to why it was cancelled.

The inquiry into the appointments was called six days after Ms Finocchiaro issued a press release last Thursday to say that she could not name Mr Murphy due to the ICAC Act and that she felt the findings of Operation Apollo were more of an “educational tool” for the public service.

Two hours later, Mr Murphy outed himself as the subject of the investigation, with the acknowledgement seeming to have been announced without Ms Finocchiaro’s knowledge. He was placed on indefinite leave late Saturday night.

Ms Finocchiaro said none of Mr Murphy’s appointments would be put on leave while the inquiry occurs.

“This is about creating a process that gives certainty and confidence to all involved,” she said. “And if people have things to say or allegations to make, they should make it to the process and that’s what it’s been set up to do.”

The terms of reference for the inquiry include:

• Examine recruitment processes relating to appointment of officers in the NT Police Force since August 2023, to the rank of Deputy Commissioner, Assistant Commissioner, Commander and Superintendent, having consideration of:
• Whether panel processes were conducted in line with the NT Police recruitment standards and the General Order: Code of Conduct and Ethics;
• Whether evidence that merit to undertake the role as required under s15A of the Police Administration Act has been demonstrated by the successful candidate in each process, and;
• Determine what remedial action may be required on the above and whether there are other recruitment matters outside of these Terms of Reference that may require remedy or further investigation and recommend the course of action to pursue or respond to them.

The final report will be provided to the OCPE and Ms Finocchiaro as Police Minister “as soon as practical for tabling in NT Parliament”.