Former Victorian premier Daniel Andrews responds to release of ...
Former Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews has responded to the release of a triple-0 call he made more than 10 years ago after a cycling collision, saying the recording confirmed his previous statements on the incident.
The triple-0 call, released by Nine's A Current Affair, was made by Mr Andrews after his car was involved in an accident that seriously injured a teenage cyclist on the Mornington Peninsula in 2013.
Mr Andrews and his three children were passengers in the car, driven by the then-opposition leader's wife Catherine, when it collided with the cyclist in Blairgowrie in January 2013.
On Thursday, Libertarian MP David Limbrick used parliamentary privilege to call for the triple-0 audio to be made public.
In a joint statement, Mr and Ms Andrews said the recording was consistent with previous statements they had made on the matter.
"The cyclist came flying through from the bike path at Ridley Street and T-boned our car at speed," the statement said.
"This matter has been comprehensively investigated over many years by Victoria Police Professional Standards Command and IBAC.
"While we are sorry that the cyclist was injured in the accident, we did nothing wrong."
Daniel and Catherine Andrews released a statement on Saturday. (ABC News: Stephanie Anderson)
Victoria Police has investigated the incident and has not laid charges, and the Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission (IBAC) later found there were no deficiencies in police conduct.
Andrews describes collision in triple-0 callIn the audio, Mr Andrews can be heard detailing the collision.
"We turned right, and he's come flying through on the bike path, and we've hit him," Mr Andrews can be heard telling the triple-0 operator.
The teenager, Ryan Meuleman, sustained upper body injuries and was flown to the Royal Children's Hospital in Melbourne.
Two police officers who attended the crash failed to follow protocol, but no further action was taken against them after a professional standards investigation.
IBAC completed a review of Victoria Police's investigation into the conduct of the police officers at the scene, which found "no deficiencies or areas of concern" in December 2017.
In 2017, Mr Andrews held a press conference after a series of Freedom of Information (FOI) requests from the media and the Liberal opposition about the collision.
"There are a lot of rumours flying around, there's a lot of pretty awful stuff being peddled around the place, and I want to answer it once and for all," he said.
"[The cyclist] was moving at speed, he absolutely T-boned the car, hit it at such force he was literally inside the car. That's how much the windscreen was depressed, he flew up over the car and hit the road."
Mr Andrews and Ms Andrews have strenuously denied any wrongdoing over the incident.
Cyclist's father glad phone call is publicPeter Meuleman, the father of Ryan Meuleman, held a press conference in Blairgowrie on Saturday and said he was "really glad the triple-0 call is out there".
"This was a public incident, it happened on public roads," he said.
Mr Meuleman said his son's physical injuries had healed from the accident but his "mental injuries leave a legacy".