00:00:05
Speaker 1: The incoming Governor of South Australia, our Police Commissioner, Grant Stephens. Commissioner, good morning to you. Well, good morning.
00:00:14
Speaker 2: And if that's a better background theme song than I'm Too Sexy.
00:00:20
Speaker 1: Was that what you were requesting? No, no, that's my ringtone. Oh, that's your ringtone. It is too.
00:00:25
Speaker 3: It went off during COVID press conference.
00:00:27
Speaker 1: I remember that.
00:00:28
Speaker 2: Yep, yep. So that's followed me.
00:00:31
Speaker 3: I think it would be safe to say that's the first time a governor has ever had that as their ringtone.
00:00:36
Speaker 1: Well, I never heard Francis's phone ring. Well, that's true. So we can't rule it out. Congratulations. Thank you. Thank you. Quite a remarkable honour. And I don't think we– I mean, every single text we've received is from well-wishers and people saying well-deserved. There's no controversy around it. A few people wondering about the timeline of it. Yeah, yeah. Did you say no to this originally?
00:01:00
Speaker 2: No, I have never said no. And I know it's been reported that I ruled myself out, but I was very careful about the words I used. I made a reference to the fact that I've got about two years left on my police commissioner contract, and my focus is on the role I have now. So that was back when it was just a rumour, by the way.
00:01:22
Speaker 3: Because we spoke in April when I asked you about it, and you said you hadn't been approached.
00:01:27
Speaker 2: When you interrogated me. It was a genuinely pleasant surprise when the Premier asked me if I would consider taking on the role. And that was only about three weeks, four weeks ago.
00:01:43
Speaker 1: Was it an easy decision?
00:01:44
Speaker 2: Yes, because of the rumours. And the rumours have been circulating for a really long time. Emma and I have had conversations about, what are you going to do if they actually ask you to be the Governor? So it's not like, because of the rumours, it didn't, sort of blindside us and you might have heard yesterday Emma and Emma said this is not something you say no to you know the honour and the privilege of serving as the Governor of South Australia is not a request in my view that you say no to the opportunity to continue serving the community of South Australia in a different and I think more dynamic way is I'm genuinely honoured by the by the offer. And yeah, it's just unless there is a reason you can't do it, a genuine legitimate reason that prevents you from being able to fulfil the duties, then there is only one answer.
00:02:45
Speaker 3: And I know you said yesterday at the press conference that the answer is just yes and you work everything out after that. But I imagine for you having been in SAPOL for Can I say how many years?
00:03:00
Speaker 1: Well, almost 45. Yeah.
00:03:03
Speaker 2: My 45th anniversary, my joining is the 7th of January, 2027. So I'm going to fall just a bit short of my 45th anniversary.
00:03:13
Speaker 3: So nearly 45 years by the time you finish up. That's not an easy decision to make for anyone to leave any industry or any job after that long.
00:03:21
Speaker 1: Will you miss it? Yeah, absolutely.
00:03:24
Speaker 2: And sad's probably not the right word, but I am reflecting on the fact that something that's been such a big part of my life is coming to a close. And I'm mindful of that anyway. July 2028 was my last contract, and I was pretty set in my view that I was not going to be asking for an extension. So my thoughts about, you know, I'd be signing off on major infrastructure projects or whatever, knowing that I won't be around to see these things completed. it's just accelerated that. So I haven't really had time to process that whole departure thing. It's become really quite real and upfront now. So just working through that. But what a great way to depart policing and a great next step. I don't think I'll have a lot of time to dwell on it once I get sworn in as governor.
00:04:15
Speaker 1: What's the closest you've been to royalty in the past?
00:04:17
Speaker 2: Well, I was fortunate enough to meet the Queen when the band of the South Australia Police were invited to play at her 90th birthday celebrations. I managed to sort of sneak in on their coattails. So, yeah, that was a bit of.
00:04:32
Speaker 1: A– I see your old hat at this. You know the protocols.
00:04:36
Speaker 2: I think I might have to get out the rule book or the protocol book and find out. Just remind myself on the right way to go about that.
00:04:42
Speaker 1: It's not all beer and skittles. There's obviously some hard news element to this as well. Walker, Butts, Murray, Pedler, Burns, Stephens– Is there a max exodus from West Lakes?
00:04:56
Speaker 2: Well, mine is an unanticipated one and not one that I've been contemplating. And I am disappointed that I can't continue to be a part of the Adelaide Football Club. And I did hear some of the comments earlier about getting the governor.
00:05:16
Speaker 1: To get rid of the board. The board of the Adelaide Football.
00:05:21
Speaker 2: Club are a great bunch of people and I... I would strongly resist any overtures that wanted me as the governor to get rid of him.
00:05:28
Speaker 1: They have my full support. This is not going to be your John Kerr moment then. That is not it.
00:05:33
Speaker 3: I did enjoy that moment of you maybe campaigning for that will.
00:05:36
Speaker 1: I was wondering if it was in the remix. Graham Goodings is in the next studio. It's nice, just another level of oversight, I think.
00:05:43
Speaker 2: I don't think that falls within my constitutional duties.
00:05:46
Speaker 1: What about, did you hear some of the other suggestions from Crows fans who are excited about the possibility all of a sudden that imagine... there might be barbecues on the lawns of Government House post-game. Well, you know, everything's up for consideration.
00:05:58
Speaker 2: Francis Adamson has done an amazing job of making Government House a house for the people of South Australia. Maybe that's the next step. But having to be bipartisan, it won't just be the Adelaide Crows.
00:06:10
Speaker 3: I was about to say, do we get Port Adelaide after parties too?
00:06:13
Speaker 2: I know there are people out there who are diametrically opposed to the other team. I'm not one of those people that and I'm not just saying this because of the new role, I've always had a, I've respected what Port Adelaide does. And, you know, we've got good friends who are part of the Port Adelaide structure. So, yeah, if there's barbecues for Crows fans, there'll be barbecues for Port Adelaide fans.
00:06:36
Speaker 1: Well, you know what? It's nice to balance it out because Port Adelaide have had a stranglehold on the legislative arm of government for such a long period of time. At least we've got the Queen's representative here in this state overseeing things.
00:06:46
Speaker 2: I think it shows just how magnanimous the Premier is that he's prepared to Offer the role of governor to.
00:06:51
Speaker 1: A Crow supporter. So when will we start calling you Your Excellency?
00:06:55
Speaker 2: I'm sworn in on the 9th of December. So that's when things will escalate. And I think I'm going to be quite busy between now and then, just understanding the entire role and starting to plan how we're going to perform that role. I think we're going to try and squeeze a week or two of a break in before we go from this job into the next one because it is going to be busy, but we're excited about that too.
00:07:23
Speaker 1: Yeah, it's interesting.
00:07:25
Speaker 3: And have you and Emma had a chance to work out what it means for family dinners? Because I know family dinners are extremely important in the Stephens household.
00:07:33
Speaker 1: They absolutely are.
00:07:34
Speaker 3: Kids and grandkids.
00:07:37
Speaker 2: We are prepared to commit ourselves to this new role, but there has to be some balance and Our family and our friends are really important to us. And we know there are going to be changes, but there are some things that we will have to work really hard to maintain. Yeah.
00:07:54
Speaker 3: New fencing for the sausage dogs?
00:07:55
Speaker 2: Well, we haven't told the sausage dogs yet. And I haven't had a chance to have a look at the fence to see. Whether they can fit through, we might have to install a one-foot fence around the perimeter that stops them from jumping out.
00:08:08
Speaker 1: The Queen was famous for her love of her corgis. I think there's a proud tradition of dog ownership in these sort of royal positions.
00:08:15
Speaker 2: Anyone who has a mini dash hound, though, will know just how inhospitable they are. Right.
00:08:21
Speaker 1: We've got to work through that.
00:08:23
Speaker 3: Yeah. At least you've got guard dogs.
00:08:25
Speaker 1: Yeah, that's right.
00:08:25
Speaker 3: You could actually probably say security, take the night off.
00:08:28
Speaker 1: We're fine.
00:08:29
Speaker 3: We've got the sausages.
00:08:30
Speaker 2: Absolutely.
00:08:31
Speaker 1: Phil on the text line says, are you looking forward to not having to put the garbage out or mow the lawn for the next five years? Excuse me.
00:08:38
Speaker 2: Well, that's one of the questions I had is what night is bin night? So Francis didn't tell me that. Yeah, and there's a lot of lawn there. One of my escapes has been just at home, get out, mow the lawns, cut back the hedges.
00:08:55
Speaker 1: I'm sure you still can. You're the governor. You can do whatever the hell you want.
00:08:58
Speaker 2: I think I need a ride on, though.
00:09:00
Speaker 1: It's a lot of lawns. A lot of lawns. You might need to go back to the old house just to mow the lawn.
00:09:03
Speaker 2: Yeah, just for my sanity.
00:09:04
Speaker 1: Well, you'll be a loss to the police force, Commissioner, and you'll be a loss for us getting to talk to you about it because you've had a way of talking about these issues and navigating them and being very approachable. and fielded any manner of questions that we've been throwing at you over the years. And we've appreciated that access and that relationship. And we'll miss it, but we obviously don't begrudge you what is a very worthy charge.
00:09:25
Speaker 2: Well, thanks, Will. And Stacey, it's always been a pleasure to come in and talk to you guys. And David, when he's not off overseas living the good life, it's been a respectful relationship where I've felt that I could I could talk freely about the things that are of interest to South Australians. And I think I've got a new platform now where I can start to have a voice that will be a positive influence for a whole range of different things rather than just community safety.
00:09:57
Speaker 1: One of the things you're not aware of too in your new role is that you are the official, you will open the undie drive every year. Excellent. That's a non-negotiable. That wasn't a question from Will. No, that's a statement.
00:10:07
Speaker 2: Does that carry some level of protocol that … It avoids me having to play the tambourine again.
00:10:15
Speaker 1: Yes, it does. You've officially graduated beyond tambourine to opening the Undie Drive. I'm very happy with that. Commissioner.
00:10:22
Speaker 3: Thank you.
00:10:23
Speaker 1: Governor, come December 9. Congratulations again. Thanks for coming in.
00:10:27
Speaker 2: Thanks, Will.
00:10:27
Speaker 1: Thanks, Stacey.
Speaker 1: The incoming Governor of South Australia, our Police Commissioner, Grant Stephens. Commissioner, good morning to you. Well, good morning.
00:00:14
Speaker 2: And if that's a better background theme song than I'm Too Sexy.
00:00:20
Speaker 1: Was that what you were requesting? No, no, that's my ringtone. Oh, that's your ringtone. It is too.
00:00:25
Speaker 3: It went off during COVID press conference.
00:00:27
Speaker 1: I remember that.
00:00:28
Speaker 2: Yep, yep. So that's followed me.
00:00:31
Speaker 3: I think it would be safe to say that's the first time a governor has ever had that as their ringtone.
00:00:36
Speaker 1: Well, I never heard Francis's phone ring. Well, that's true. So we can't rule it out. Congratulations. Thank you. Thank you. Quite a remarkable honour. And I don't think we– I mean, every single text we've received is from well-wishers and people saying well-deserved. There's no controversy around it. A few people wondering about the timeline of it. Yeah, yeah. Did you say no to this originally?
00:01:00
Speaker 2: No, I have never said no. And I know it's been reported that I ruled myself out, but I was very careful about the words I used. I made a reference to the fact that I've got about two years left on my police commissioner contract, and my focus is on the role I have now. So that was back when it was just a rumour, by the way.
00:01:22
Speaker 3: Because we spoke in April when I asked you about it, and you said you hadn't been approached.
00:01:27
Speaker 2: When you interrogated me. It was a genuinely pleasant surprise when the Premier asked me if I would consider taking on the role. And that was only about three weeks, four weeks ago.
00:01:43
Speaker 1: Was it an easy decision?
00:01:44
Speaker 2: Yes, because of the rumours. And the rumours have been circulating for a really long time. Emma and I have had conversations about, what are you going to do if they actually ask you to be the Governor? So it's not like, because of the rumours, it didn't, sort of blindside us and you might have heard yesterday Emma and Emma said this is not something you say no to you know the honour and the privilege of serving as the Governor of South Australia is not a request in my view that you say no to the opportunity to continue serving the community of South Australia in a different and I think more dynamic way is I'm genuinely honoured by the by the offer. And yeah, it's just unless there is a reason you can't do it, a genuine legitimate reason that prevents you from being able to fulfil the duties, then there is only one answer.
00:02:45
Speaker 3: And I know you said yesterday at the press conference that the answer is just yes and you work everything out after that. But I imagine for you having been in SAPOL for Can I say how many years?
00:03:00
Speaker 1: Well, almost 45. Yeah.
00:03:03
Speaker 2: My 45th anniversary, my joining is the 7th of January, 2027. So I'm going to fall just a bit short of my 45th anniversary.
00:03:13
Speaker 3: So nearly 45 years by the time you finish up. That's not an easy decision to make for anyone to leave any industry or any job after that long.
00:03:21
Speaker 1: Will you miss it? Yeah, absolutely.
00:03:24
Speaker 2: And sad's probably not the right word, but I am reflecting on the fact that something that's been such a big part of my life is coming to a close. And I'm mindful of that anyway. July 2028 was my last contract, and I was pretty set in my view that I was not going to be asking for an extension. So my thoughts about, you know, I'd be signing off on major infrastructure projects or whatever, knowing that I won't be around to see these things completed. it's just accelerated that. So I haven't really had time to process that whole departure thing. It's become really quite real and upfront now. So just working through that. But what a great way to depart policing and a great next step. I don't think I'll have a lot of time to dwell on it once I get sworn in as governor.
00:04:15
Speaker 1: What's the closest you've been to royalty in the past?
00:04:17
Speaker 2: Well, I was fortunate enough to meet the Queen when the band of the South Australia Police were invited to play at her 90th birthday celebrations. I managed to sort of sneak in on their coattails. So, yeah, that was a bit of.
00:04:32
Speaker 1: A– I see your old hat at this. You know the protocols.
00:04:36
Speaker 2: I think I might have to get out the rule book or the protocol book and find out. Just remind myself on the right way to go about that.
00:04:42
Speaker 1: It's not all beer and skittles. There's obviously some hard news element to this as well. Walker, Butts, Murray, Pedler, Burns, Stephens– Is there a max exodus from West Lakes?
00:04:56
Speaker 2: Well, mine is an unanticipated one and not one that I've been contemplating. And I am disappointed that I can't continue to be a part of the Adelaide Football Club. And I did hear some of the comments earlier about getting the governor.
00:05:16
Speaker 1: To get rid of the board. The board of the Adelaide Football.
00:05:21
Speaker 2: Club are a great bunch of people and I... I would strongly resist any overtures that wanted me as the governor to get rid of him.
00:05:28
Speaker 1: They have my full support. This is not going to be your John Kerr moment then. That is not it.
00:05:33
Speaker 3: I did enjoy that moment of you maybe campaigning for that will.
00:05:36
Speaker 1: I was wondering if it was in the remix. Graham Goodings is in the next studio. It's nice, just another level of oversight, I think.
00:05:43
Speaker 2: I don't think that falls within my constitutional duties.
00:05:46
Speaker 1: What about, did you hear some of the other suggestions from Crows fans who are excited about the possibility all of a sudden that imagine... there might be barbecues on the lawns of Government House post-game. Well, you know, everything's up for consideration.
00:05:58
Speaker 2: Francis Adamson has done an amazing job of making Government House a house for the people of South Australia. Maybe that's the next step. But having to be bipartisan, it won't just be the Adelaide Crows.
00:06:10
Speaker 3: I was about to say, do we get Port Adelaide after parties too?
00:06:13
Speaker 2: I know there are people out there who are diametrically opposed to the other team. I'm not one of those people that and I'm not just saying this because of the new role, I've always had a, I've respected what Port Adelaide does. And, you know, we've got good friends who are part of the Port Adelaide structure. So, yeah, if there's barbecues for Crows fans, there'll be barbecues for Port Adelaide fans.
00:06:36
Speaker 1: Well, you know what? It's nice to balance it out because Port Adelaide have had a stranglehold on the legislative arm of government for such a long period of time. At least we've got the Queen's representative here in this state overseeing things.
00:06:46
Speaker 2: I think it shows just how magnanimous the Premier is that he's prepared to Offer the role of governor to.
00:06:51
Speaker 1: A Crow supporter. So when will we start calling you Your Excellency?
00:06:55
Speaker 2: I'm sworn in on the 9th of December. So that's when things will escalate. And I think I'm going to be quite busy between now and then, just understanding the entire role and starting to plan how we're going to perform that role. I think we're going to try and squeeze a week or two of a break in before we go from this job into the next one because it is going to be busy, but we're excited about that too.
00:07:23
Speaker 1: Yeah, it's interesting.
00:07:25
Speaker 3: And have you and Emma had a chance to work out what it means for family dinners? Because I know family dinners are extremely important in the Stephens household.
00:07:33
Speaker 1: They absolutely are.
00:07:34
Speaker 3: Kids and grandkids.
00:07:37
Speaker 2: We are prepared to commit ourselves to this new role, but there has to be some balance and Our family and our friends are really important to us. And we know there are going to be changes, but there are some things that we will have to work really hard to maintain. Yeah.
00:07:54
Speaker 3: New fencing for the sausage dogs?
00:07:55
Speaker 2: Well, we haven't told the sausage dogs yet. And I haven't had a chance to have a look at the fence to see. Whether they can fit through, we might have to install a one-foot fence around the perimeter that stops them from jumping out.
00:08:08
Speaker 1: The Queen was famous for her love of her corgis. I think there's a proud tradition of dog ownership in these sort of royal positions.
00:08:15
Speaker 2: Anyone who has a mini dash hound, though, will know just how inhospitable they are. Right.
00:08:21
Speaker 1: We've got to work through that.
00:08:23
Speaker 3: Yeah. At least you've got guard dogs.
00:08:25
Speaker 1: Yeah, that's right.
00:08:25
Speaker 3: You could actually probably say security, take the night off.
00:08:28
Speaker 1: We're fine.
00:08:29
Speaker 3: We've got the sausages.
00:08:30
Speaker 2: Absolutely.
00:08:31
Speaker 1: Phil on the text line says, are you looking forward to not having to put the garbage out or mow the lawn for the next five years? Excuse me.
00:08:38
Speaker 2: Well, that's one of the questions I had is what night is bin night? So Francis didn't tell me that. Yeah, and there's a lot of lawn there. One of my escapes has been just at home, get out, mow the lawns, cut back the hedges.
00:08:55
Speaker 1: I'm sure you still can. You're the governor. You can do whatever the hell you want.
00:08:58
Speaker 2: I think I need a ride on, though.
00:09:00
Speaker 1: It's a lot of lawns. A lot of lawns. You might need to go back to the old house just to mow the lawn.
00:09:03
Speaker 2: Yeah, just for my sanity.
00:09:04
Speaker 1: Well, you'll be a loss to the police force, Commissioner, and you'll be a loss for us getting to talk to you about it because you've had a way of talking about these issues and navigating them and being very approachable. and fielded any manner of questions that we've been throwing at you over the years. And we've appreciated that access and that relationship. And we'll miss it, but we obviously don't begrudge you what is a very worthy charge.
00:09:25
Speaker 2: Well, thanks, Will. And Stacey, it's always been a pleasure to come in and talk to you guys. And David, when he's not off overseas living the good life, it's been a respectful relationship where I've felt that I could I could talk freely about the things that are of interest to South Australians. And I think I've got a new platform now where I can start to have a voice that will be a positive influence for a whole range of different things rather than just community safety.
00:09:57
Speaker 1: One of the things you're not aware of too in your new role is that you are the official, you will open the undie drive every year. Excellent. That's a non-negotiable. That wasn't a question from Will. No, that's a statement.
00:10:07
Speaker 2: Does that carry some level of protocol that … It avoids me having to play the tambourine again.
00:10:15
Speaker 1: Yes, it does. You've officially graduated beyond tambourine to opening the Undie Drive. I'm very happy with that. Commissioner.
00:10:22
Speaker 3: Thank you.
00:10:23
Speaker 1: Governor, come December 9. Congratulations again. Thanks for coming in.
00:10:27
Speaker 2: Thanks, Will.
00:10:27
Speaker 1: Thanks, Stacey.
