\u201cIf people want to know who I am politically \u2026 I\u2019m evidence-based, not ideological,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n
Yet in his first two weeks as premier, he\u2019s also regularly talked about integrity in government and the trail of controversies that dogged his two immediate predecessors, Jacinta Allan and Andrews.<\/p>\n
He has moved quickly to distance himself from both \u2013 announcing a royal commission into the construction industry<\/a>, promising stronger powers for Victoria\u2019s anti-corruption watchdog and overhauling the cabinet<\/a>, including scrapping dedicated infrastructure portfolios.<\/p>\n He\u2019s also been left to respond to the release of the Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission\u2019s long-awaited report into the Andrews government\u2019s dealings with the United Firefighters Union<\/a>.<\/p>\n While the report stopped short of making any findings of corrupt conduct, it found that members of the Andrews government engaged in \u201cserious and concerning\u201d conduct when negotiating firefighter pay deals with the UFU\u2019s Peter Marshall. This included an \u201cundisclosed\u201d 2016 deal struck over champagne in a Melbourne hotel room<\/a> without the knowledge of the minister responsible, Jane Garrett.<\/p>\n Asked whether the affair erodes trust in government, Carroll says: \u201cIt does.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhat occurred was not cabinet government and it was a failure of cabinet government,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n \u201cI find it very hard to stomach an EBA stitched up in a hotel room behind a minister\u2019s back \u2013 that is what grates with me the most.\u201d<\/p>\n Carroll says he will soon announce details of the royal commission into the construction industry. Photograph: Ellen Smith\/The Guardian<\/p>\n Carroll describes the report as \u201cvindication\u201d for Garrett, whom he considered a friend before her death in 2022<\/a>. She resigned as emergency services minister rather than support the agreement at the time.<\/p>\n Carroll has put integrity front and centre of his new regime, and says he hopes to publicly announce the terms of reference for the royal commission into the construction industry next week. It will examine major contractors, subcontractors, unions \u2013 and the government \u2013 after allegations of corruption on the $100bn Big Build program, which is estimated to have cost taxpayers up to $15bn<\/a>.<\/p>\n But while careful not to prejudge its findings, Carroll says he does not think government officials knew about the alleged corruption as it unfolded.<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t believe that,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n Yet, as he seeks to continue the multi-billion dollar program even amid a looming royal commission, Carroll says reforms introduced under Allan have already improved oversight of construction sites, and has heard they \u201care better places than what they were\u201d.<\/p>\n He is adamant that building a train line to Melbourne\u2019s airport is his top infrastructure priority.<\/p>\n \u201cAirport rail has been around for 100 years. The public get it. They understand it. I think with the Suburban Rail Loop, it did not have a gestational period,\u201d he says, referring to a project that he flagged for potential review<\/a> just weeks before tunnelling is due to begin.<\/p>\n \u201cI do believe we need to make sure that the public fully understand it.\u201d<\/p>\n Labor right returns<\/p>\n Carroll is the first leader from Labor\u2019s right faction<\/a> to lead the state since John Brumby lost the 2010 election. But he rejects the idea that his elevation marks an ideological shift.<\/p>\n \u201cI see myself as someone who is financially responsible, socially progressive. My track record shows that I\u2019m socially progressive,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n That extends to the government\u2019s treaty with First Nations Victorians. Carroll says he\u2019s a \u201cvery strong supporter\u201d of Australia\u2019s first formal treaty with First Nations people<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is giving our First Nations people their respected place in our story, and recognising their ability to succeed,\u201d he says. \u201cI\u2019m very proud of treaty and my predecessor should be too.\u201d<\/p>\n Both the Coalition and One Nation have committed to scrapping treaty, a prospect he says is \u201cunfathomable\u201d before it\u2019s even been given \u201ca chance\u201d to succeed.<\/p>\n skip past newsletter promotion<\/a>Free newsletter | When needed<\/p>\n Sign up to Breaking News Australia<\/p>\n Get the most important news as it breaks<\/p>\n after newsletter promotion<\/p>\n Carroll speaks to Guardian Australian near his home in Melbourne\u2019s north, where a steady stream of constituents approach the new premier to congratulate him as he sits at a cafe.<\/p>\n Two women overhear as the conversation turns to cannabis.<\/p>\n \u201cMaybe you should give it a try,\u201d one says.<\/p>\n Carroll laughs. He says he has never used cannabis.<\/p>\n \u201cI have been with people that have smoked it, but I just didn\u2019t,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n \u2018It\u2019s not rocket science\u2019 \u2026 Carroll says the root causes of crime need to be tackled. Photograph: Ellen Smith\/The Guardian<\/p>\n Several Victorian parliamentary inquiries have recommended following the ACT in decriminalising the possession and cultivation of small amounts of cannabis for personal use.<\/p>\n While Carroll says he\u2019s open to discussion on removing criminal penalties, which have been found to disproportionately affect First Nations people, young people and lower-income Victorians, he does not support full legalisation.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m open to a discussion on decriminalisation. I have been around places that have made it legal, though, and I have thought it has a real impact on the amenity of those areas and I don\u2019t want that to happen in our state,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n But he stresses he has \u201chigher priorities\u201d when it comes to social reform.<\/p>\n Among them is tackling the root causes of crime. Victoria\u2019s crime rate has begun to drop<\/a>, but this has followed tougher bail laws and uplifting serious youth offences to adult courts.<\/p>\n Carroll supports the laws. But he says \u2013 having visited the Harlem Children\u2019s Zone in New York and Scotland\u2019s Violence Reduction Unit, which is now being replicated in Victoria<\/a> \u2013 the \u201csilver bullet\u201d is investing in education and after-school and weekend programs for young people, as well as providing them with stable housing and jobs.<\/p>\n He says this work needs to be concentrated in disadvantaged parts of the state.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s not rocket science.\u201d<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/2998.jpg\")
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