The appointment of Mal Lanyon as police commissioner shows the boys’ club is alive and well in Sydney

September 24, 2025 — 2.04pm

The appointment of Mal Lanyon as the state’s 24th police commissioner shows the boys’ club is alive and well in Sydney.

Ordinarily, playing by the rules of the boys’ club would require the Herald to welcome Lanyon’s appointment, or else we may be offside with the new commissioner, the premier and police minister who appointed him, and the cabal of media, business and union figures who worked hard behind the scenes to make sure their man got the job.

Incoming NSW Police commissioner Mal Lanyon and NSW Premier Chris Minns.Credit: Kate Geraghty

Lanyon had the support of the powerful NSW Police Association, as well as the NSW MP who is most vocal on police matters, former detective and upper house member Rod Roberts. The feckless opposition has waved through the appointment. Conservative media figures also backed Lanyon, as have factions within the NSW Police Force who worked hard to bring down the outgoing commissioner Karen Webb.

Forgive us for having a very different view of Lanyon’s ascension. This is, without question, one of the most flawed decisions made by the NSW government since it came to power in March 2023.

Right at a time when the NSW Police Force needs stability, leadership and cultural change, Premier Chris Minns has selected the wrong person.

The fact the premier, Lanyon and Police Minister Yasmin Catley spent the majority of Wednesday’s press conference defending the new commissioner and his history only proves this is far from a regular appointment, and deserving of extreme scrutiny.

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Minns assured the public he was confident Lanyon has the “skills, experience and vision” to guide the NSW Police Force into its next chapter. But what about the judgment? Lanyon has at least two black marks against his name: a New Year’s Eve joyride with mates on a police boat which he has acknowledged was inappropriate, and an incident in Goulburn in early 2021 when paramedics were called to a motel near the police academy because Lanyon was lying drunk on the footpath. The then-deputy commissioner told the ambulance officers to “f--- off” before calling their boss, Ambulance NSW chief executive Dominic Morgan. Lanyon said on Wednesday he wasn’t aware of any other issues in his past which may come back to bite.

Minns last week hinted that Lanyon was the front runner for the role, saying “if we’re only picking people who have got completely, completely lily-white records then we’ll be missing out on a lot of people that can contribute to public life.”

Everyone makes mistakes, including in the workplace or in ways that may affect the workplace. It is the most human of experiences. But the NSW Police commissioner is not everyone. They should be the exemplar of professional conduct.

When the Herald’s chief reporter Jordan Baker asked Minns on Wednesday where the line on standards actually is for a police commissioner, the premier responded by saying the question was unfair and an attempt to “tarnish” Lanyon. Absolute garbage. It was a perfectly reasonable thing to ask, and Minns’ sensitivity was revealing.

The premier is strapped to Lanyon. If the commissioner stumbles in the job, Minns will be damaged in the fallout and only have himself to blame. Good luck.

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