Former job awaits new education boss
The new boss of the South Australian Education Department is entitled to walk straight back into his former police job if things don’t work out, it has been revealed.
Tony Harrison will earn almost $400,000 a year, but isn’t required to give up his old post.
Mr Harrison’s appointment raised eyebrows as he doesn’t have any formal education experience, yet his lucrative deal has a massive safety net.
He’s on unpaid leave from the police force with all the entitlements.
He isn’t required to resign, and won’t say whether he will quit to make way for a younger officer.
“I’m working through those issues at the moment,” Mr Harrison said.
SA Police Commissioner Gary Burns said: “If he was to come back to police, he would come back as a superintendent, but that might not even come into play.”
The Education Union has concerns, but the Premier Jay Weatherill is sticking by his guns.
“He is fully committed to this role,” Mr Weatherill said.
But the Opposition claims the Premier viewed former education boss Keith Bartley in the same light - and he suddenly quit yesterday.
Opposition leader Steven Marshall said Tony Harrison’s promotion is bizarre.
“It does seem an extraordinary situation, if you’d like to have the safety net of going back to the police force, he’s either in this job or he is not,” Mr Marshall said.
Jay Weatherill has also revealed Keith Bartley hinted at resigning three months ago, 10 weeks before the damning Debelle findings into school sex abuse were delivered.
