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Christine Nixon (born 11 June 1953) is an Australian former police officer who was the
chief commissioner A chief commissioner is a commissioner of high rank, usually in chief of several commissioners or similarly styled officers. Colonial In British India the gubernatorial style was chief commissioner in various (not all) provinces (often after bein ...
of
Victoria Police Victoria Police is the primary law enforcement agency of the Australian States and territories of Australia, state of Victoria (Australia), Victoria. It was formed in 1853 and currently operates under the ''Victoria Police Act 2013''. , Victor ...
from 23 April 2001 to 27 February 2009, being the first female chief commissioner in any Australian state police force. After leaving Victoria Police, she was appointed as
chair A chair is a type of seat, typically designed for one person and consisting of one or more legs, a flat or slightly angled seat and a back-rest. It may be made of wood, metal, or synthetic materials, and may be padded or upholstered in vario ...
of the Victorian Bushfire Reconstruction and Recovery Authority in February 2009 until she stood down from the position in July 2010.


Education

Nixon attended
Macquarie University Macquarie University ( ) is a Public university, public research university in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Founded in 1964 by the New South Wales Government, it was the third university to be established in the Sydney metropolitan area. ...
before attaining a
Master of Public Administration A Master of Public Administration (MPA) is a specialized professional graduate degree in public administration that prepares students for leadership roles, similar or equivalent to a Master of Business Administration but with an emphasis on the ...
from
Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...
's
John F. Kennedy School of Government The John F. Kennedy School of Government, commonly referred to as Harvard Kennedy School (HKS), is the school of public policy of Harvard University, a private university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Harvard Kennedy School offers master's de ...
.


Police career

The daughter of Ross Nixon, an assistant commissioner with the
New South Wales Police Force The New South Wales Police Force is a law enforcement agency of the state of New South Wales, Australia, established in 1862. With more than 17,000 police officers, it is the largest police organisation in Australia, policing an area of 801,60 ...
, Christine Nixon began her policing career with the same police force in 1972, also rising to the rank of Assistant Commissioner. She was appointed Chief Commissioner of
Victoria Police Victoria Police is the primary law enforcement agency of the Australian States and territories of Australia, state of Victoria (Australia), Victoria. It was formed in 1853 and currently operates under the ''Victoria Police Act 2013''. , Victor ...
in April 2001 by the Bracks Labor government. Having initially set a retirement date of late March 2009, Nixon departed earlier at the request of the Victorian Government to take on responsibility for the Victorian Bushfire Reconstruction and Recovery Authority. She was succeeded as Chief Commissioner by
Simon Overland Simon James Overland (born 19 March 1962)
2 March 2009, www.premier.vic.gov.au
is the for ...
.


Pride March

As Chief Commissioner, Nixon marched in uniform during Melbourne's gay and lesbian ' Pride March', run as part of the
Midsumma Festival Midsumma Festival is a celebration of LGBTQIA+ arts and cultures held annually for 22 days over January and February in Melbourne, Australia. History and background The festival began as a one-week celebration of LGBTQIA+ pride in 1989. Les ...
. Nixon is heterosexual but marched to express her support for gay and lesbian causes, stating "What I'm doing is supporting decent and reasonable people who want to get on with their lives, and they have been treated appallingly previously by the Police, and I'm prepared to do something about it. And if it's a small symbol of marching with them, then that would be a reasonable thing to do."


Criticism

Nixon was criticised when she joined her husband, John Becquet, a former
Qantas Qantas ( ), formally Qantas Airways Limited, is the flag carrier of Australia, and the largest airline by fleet size, international flights, and international destinations in Australia and List of largest airlines in Oceania, Oceania. A foundi ...
senior executive of crew operations, on the October 2008 inaugural international flight of Qantas'
Airbus A380 The Airbus A380 is a very large wide-body airliner, developed and produced by Airbus until 2021. It is the world's largest passenger airliner and the only full-length double-deck jet airliner. Airbus studies started in 1988, and the pr ...
airliner from Melbourne to Los Angeles, as guests of Qantas in an all-expenses-paid, three-day trip. Ms Nixon called the trip "reasonable" and commented that she was accompanying her husband, and that she had not had a holiday in about 12 months. Mr Becquet defended the trip by saying they were invited to LA after a chance meeting with a Qantas executive. "I am normally her handbag but on this she's my handbag." The couple celebrated their 16th wedding anniversary during this week. The head of the Office of Police Integrity, Michael Strong, sought information on the matter from Ms Nixon at a time of calls for her to reimburse the airline for the cost of the trip.


Royal commission

Nixon was called to appear before the 2009 Victorian Bushfires Royal Commission concerning her actions as chief commissioner during the
Black Saturday bushfires The Black Saturday bushfires were a series of bushfires that either ignited or were already burning across the Australian state of Victoria. Saturday, 7 February 2009 was one of Australia's all-time worst bushfire disasters. The fires occurred ...
on 7 February 2009. Counsel assisting the commission, Rachel Doyle SC, questioned Nixon on issues such as a morning hairdressing appointment, a lunchtime meeting with her biographer and an evening dinner at a restaurant, all during the worst day of the bushfires. Nixon defended her actions, stating, "It was not my job to swoop in and take control. When you have good people who are more skilled in emergency management than I am, you let those people do the job."


Bushfire authority

In February 2009 Nixon assumed responsibility for the Victorian Bushfire Reconstruction and Recovery Authority, the agency tasked with rebuilding areas affected by the
Black Saturday bushfires The Black Saturday bushfires were a series of bushfires that either ignited or were already burning across the Australian state of Victoria. Saturday, 7 February 2009 was one of Australia's all-time worst bushfire disasters. The fires occurred ...
of February 2009. She stood down from the position on 17 July 2010, and announced she would take on a voluntary advisory role with the authority.


Chair of RACGP

In October 2019 Nixon was selected as the chair of the
Royal Australian College of General Practitioners Royal may refer to: People * Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * A member of a royal family or royalty Places United States * Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Royal, Illinois, a village * Ro ...
(RACGP) board. This was the first time in the college's 61-year history that a non-GP was chosen for the role. She had been on the RACGP council since 2017. RACGP president Harry Nespolon praised her prior skills in leading large organisations and said of the appointment, "Ideally we would have a GP chairing the RACGP as a member-based organisation, but at the moment, Christine is the right person."


Other positions

Nixon was a non-executive director of
Foster's Group Foster's Group Pty. Ltd. was an Australian beer group with interests in brewing and soft drinks, known for Foster's Lager, now called Carlton & United Breweries since the company was renamed in 2011. Foster's was founded in 1888 in Melbourne, ...
from 1 April 2010 to 31 August 2010. She also serves as Patron or Advisor to the Alannah and Madeline Foundation, Onside Victoria, Operation Newstart Victoria and The Phoenix Club Inc. She has been appointed as the Deputy Chancellor of Monash University.


Awards

Nixon has been awarded the
Australian Police Medal The Australian Police Medal (APM) is awarded for distinguished service by a member of an Australian police force. The APM was introduced in 1986, and replaced the Imperial King’s Police Medal for Gallantry and King’s Police Medal, King’s Po ...
, the National Medal, the
Centenary Medal The Centenary Medal is an award which was created by the Australian Government in 2001. It was established to commemorate the centenary of the Federation of Australia and to recognise "people who made a contribution to Australian society or g ...
, the New South Wales Police Medal and clasps for Ethical and Diligent Service and the New South Wales Police Force Olympic Citation. She was inducted onto the Victorian Honour Roll of Women in 2001. She was appointed an
Officer of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an Australian honours and awards system, Australian honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Monarch ...
for "law enforcement, to women in policing, and to tertiary education" in the 2021 Queen's Birthday Honours.


Health

On 18 July 2010 Nixon was taken to hospital. She subsequently underwent
gall bladder In vertebrates, the gallbladder, also known as the cholecyst, is a small hollow organ where bile is stored and concentrated before it is released into the small intestine. In humans, the pear-shaped gallbladder lies beneath the liver, althoug ...
surgery.


Memoirs

In 2011 Nixon published her memoirs in the book ''Fair Cop'' (), which she wrote with Jo Chandler. The book was launched by the Prime Minister,
Julia Gillard Julia Eileen Gillard (born 29 September 1961) is an Australian former politician who served as the 27th prime minister of Australia from 2010 to 2013. She held office as the leader of the Labor Party (ALP), having previously served as the ...
. It was criticised by the Police Association Victoria for what the association claims is a biased recollection of events, and by the ''
Herald Sun The ''Herald Sun'' is a Conservatism, conservative daily tabloid newspaper based in Melbourne, Australia, published by The Herald and Weekly Times, a subsidiary of News Corp Australia, itself a subsidiary of the American Rupert Murdoch, Murd ...
''.


See also

*
Crime in Melbourne Criminal activity in Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia is combated by the Victoria Police and the Victorian court system, while statistics about crime are managed by the Crime Statistics Agency. Modern Australian states and cities, incl ...
* Women in law enforcement


References


External links


Christine Nixon official website

About Christine Nixon from the Victoria Police website


on
Australian Story ''Australian Story'' is a national weekly current affairs and documentary style television series which is broadcast on ABC Television (Australian TV network), ABC Television. It is produced specifically by the ABC News and Current Affairs, AB ...

Christine Nixon interviewed
on
Radio National ABC Radio National, more commonly known as Radio National or simply RN, is an Australian nationwide public service radio network run by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). From 1947 until 1985, the network was known as ABC Radio 2. ...

Trust us, says police chief

Honorary doctorate for Christine Nixon
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Nixon, Christine 1953 births Living people Chief Commissioners of Victoria Police Harvard Kennedy School alumni People from Sydney Police officers from Melbourne Officers of the Order of Australia Recipients of the Australian Police Medal Women police officers 21st-century police officers