Sam Newman blasts Dan Andrews over King’s Birthday honour – as it’s revealed why he won’t be stripped of it

Footy legend Sam Newman has unleashed a scathing tirade after former Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews was named in the King’s Birthday award.

Mr Andrews was awarded the country’s highest honor and was appointed Companion of the Order of Australia (AC) along with six other eminent Australians on Monday.

As the longest-serving Labor Prime Minister in the state’s history, Mr Andrews was recognized for his efforts ‘Outstanding service to the people and Parliament of Victoria, to public health, to policy and regulatory reform, and to infrastructure development’.

The award has sparked outrage after Mr Andrews became increasingly unpopular for enforcing the country’s toughest restrictions during the Covid pandemic, with the tough approach earning him the nickname ‘Dictator Dan’.

Newman continued the attack on Andrews on Thursday as it emerged it will be impossible to strip Andrews of the honor despite mounting calls from across the country.

Former Prime Minister Danial Andrews (pictured with his wife Catherine) was appointed Companion of the Order of Australia for his ‘distinguished services to the people and Parliament of Victoria, to public health, to policy and regulatory reform, and to development of the infrastructure’

Newman recorded himself aboard his boat Angst and shared the inflammatory video on Instagram with the caption: “Why give an award to someone who is clearly unworthy?”

Addressing the appointment as a Companion of the Order of Australia, he declared that AC stood for ‘absolute nonsense’.

“If you want to know what AC stands for – this is Dan Andrews getting one – what it means (is) absolute nonsense,” Mr Newman said.

“Here is a government that tried to win over the electorate by going for the Commonwealth Games. Won the election and then canceled the games.

‘Say no more. How would you give someone an award for that? You can’t be serious!’

Victorian Nationals leader Peter Walsh launched a petition on Wednesday urging Governor-General David Hurley to strip Andrews of the honour.

Mr Walsh claimed the award was “inappropriate and unwarranted” and that the former premier, nicknamed “Dictator Dan”, had let Victorians down with the way he handled the pandemic.

Victoria’s former Liberal premier Jeff Kennett also made waves when he called on Shelly Reys, president of the Council for the Order of Australia, to explain why Mr Andrews received the honour.

“To my knowledge, Mr. Andrews has not only failed to perform any eminent community service, but has also reprehensibly failed any objective test on the matters for which he has been recognized,” Mr. Kennett wrote this week.

Mr Kennett also claimed Victorians would have to ‘pay heavily’ for decades because of Mr Andrews’ ‘failures’.

Footy legend Sam Newman took aim at Andrews’ appointment as a Companion of the Order of Australia (AC), saying AC stood for ‘absolute nonsense’

Former United Australia Party MP Craig Kelly shared his thoughts on X along with several of Mr Andrews’ critics.

‘At first I thought it was a bad joke, but both Dan Andrews and former WA Prime Minister Mark McGowan were awarded ACs for ‘Covid Leadership’ in the King’s Birthday Honours. They should both serve a prison sentence,” he said.

Commentator Neil Mitchell explained Thursday that the only way to strip Andrews of the award would be if he were convicted of a crime or “embarrassed the crown.”

“I don’t think he should have gotten it, but…” [stripping the award] That won’t happen,” he told Sunrise.

“You can only lose that honor if you are convicted of a crime or if it turns out that you have brought discredit on the honor, that is, embarrassed the crown.”

Mitchell added that the award has only come from an individual a half-dozen times in history.

Former Melbourne mayor Robert Doyle has been stripped of the Order of Australia honor in 2023.

Doyle received the award in 2017 for his work in local government and his contribution to community organizations.

Governor General Hurley withdrew that appointment on the recommendation of the Council of the Order of Australia.

In 2018, Doyle resigned as mayor amid sexual harassment allegations, but there were no criminal convictions.

The reasons for the decline of Doyle’s award remain unknown, but the legislation provides that ‘the Governor-General may terminate an appointment or revoke an award if, in the opinion of the Governor-General, the holder of the appointment or award has behaved or acted in a manner that has brought the Order into disrepute’.

Commentator Neil Mitchell (pictured) explained that the only way to strip Mr Andrews of the award would be if he were convicted of a crime or ’embarrassed the crown’.