Vic: Nixon refuses to check all files in wake of records scandal

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Vic: Nixon refuses to check all files in wake of records scandal

MELBOURNE, Aug 11 AAP - Victorian Police chief commissioner Christine Nixon today refusedto carry out checks on whether the police files of hundreds of Victorian MPs and politicalcandidates had been accessed inappropriately.

The state opposition had requested checks on the accessing of police records on 130of its MPs and candidates after the file of one of its candidates was found to have beenwrongly accessed in the lead-up to the last state election.

Ms Nixon said she had also received requests from the National Party and Labor forsimilar checks, in some cases going back to 1992.

She said such an extensive audit of the police's "LEAP" database would be a waste of resources.

"Without any evidence of misuse, I do not intend to spend literally hundreds and hundredsof hours of police time conducting checks as part of a broad search of the LEAP system,"

she told reporters.

"This is not appropriate use of police resources and I really think the community wouldprefer that we go about our tasks of investigating crime and protecting our community."

However, she said if individual MPs and candidates requested the information throughFoI, Victoria Police would have to comply with the request.

Ms Nixon said she had already conducted a random audit of five names supplied by VictorianOpposition Leader Robert Doyle, and found no evidence of misuse of the system.

She said five names would also be checked for Labor and the National Party.

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KEYWORD: FILES