A senior Victorian public servant in charge of infection control at the state's quarantine hotels has been stood down after they reportedly committed multiple compliance breaches.
Matiu Bush, general manager of infection prevention and control at COVID-19 Quarantine Victoria (CQV), was stood down overnight.
Bush, who has been involved in the program since June, uses the pronouns they/them.
"Last night I become aware of reports in relation to Mr Bush and I formed the conclusion overnight that it would be appropriate Mr Bush stood down pending a review in relation to his conduct and behaviour," Danny Pearson, the minister responsible for hotel quarantine, told reporters outside parliament on Wednesday.
Bush is one of 15 CQV leaders approved to work across a number of the state's hotel quarantine sites.
According to reports published in The Australian on Wednesday, they had to be counselled for initially refusing to undergo a mandatory test after visiting one of the hotels.
"I'm the head of IPC and I override that protocol," Bush reportedly told an Australian Defence Force member working at the hotel.
Emma Cassar, head of CQV, said Bush was tested at another location on the same day.
Bush was also accused of breaching infection controls after visiting another quarantine hotel.
They reportedly left the hotel, which was not hosting returned travellers at the time, to get a coffee and returned without changing their mask or sanitising.
"From an IPC perspective, the risk was minimal, if not zero," Ms Cassar said, though she conceded their behaviour was not befitting of a leader.
"I don't think the public would want to see someone in a senior leadership role continue to behave in this way," Mr Pearson said.
He said Victorians expected hotel quarantine to work as efficiently and safely as possible.
"I want the best team in hotel quarantine keeping us all safe," Mr Pearson said.
"Everyone in hotel quarantine has got to take this seriously."
Other incidents reported by The Australian include contractors and bureaucrats being allowed to enter or trying to enter hotel sites in Melbourne despite not be being vaccinated, as is required.
While nearly all were told to leave once their vaccination status was known, in some cases it was not checked when they entered.
The incidents reportedly occurred at the Holiday Inn Airport, Novotel IBIS, InterContinental Melbourne and Four Points Hotel.
The state's second wave, which last year resulted in more than 18,000 new infections, 800 deaths and an 112-day lockdown, leaked from hotel quarantine.
The program was overhauled after a judicial inquiry.
Opposition Leader Michael O'Brien said the government had failed to learn from its mistakes.
"Every single day we see new evidence that this government still hasn't got hotel quarantine right," he told reporters outside parliament on Wednesday.
"Now all Victorians are at risk, every Victorian is exposed because this government is just incompetent, they can't do the basics right."
It comes as Victoria recorded its 68th consecutive day without a locally acquired case of COVID-19 on Wednesday, following 19,402 tests.
There were also no cases in hotel quarantine, with the total number of active cases in the state at 20.
A record 8406 people were vaccinated at the state's immunisation hubs on Tuesday.
