Premier Andrews gave praise to the response of the wider community's action to the operation. Protesters stop traffic outside Flinders Street during action against Operation Border Force. Credit:Joe Armao "You saw a very, very Victorian response as people literally took to the streets to protest against something that was ill-conceived and not something supported by my government, not something supported by Victoria police and indeed not something supported by the Victorian community," Mr Andrews said. Like the rest of the community, Mr Andrews said his government only became aware of the specifics of the operation when the Border Force released the now infamous press release on Friday morning. "We were very clear that Victoria police and the Victorian government do not and never will support an operation like this," he said.

Mr Andrews' comments came amid reports that the press release the government has blamed for sparking Friday's near-riot was sent to Immigration Minister Peter Dutton's office, but no one read it. Labor Leader Bill Shorten accused the government on Sunday of trying to "throw some middle-level bureaucrat in a uniform under the bus" rather than take responsibility for Friday's havoc. News Corp reported that Mr Dutton's office was first sent a briefing note about the operation on Wednesday night, but the document was not read because it was regarded as "routine" and Mr Dutton was not informed. Labor's Immigration spokesman Richard Marles said it was an "astonishing admission" Mr Dutton had not read the material and accused the Minister of incompetence. "We're not talking about a school kid failing to do his homework here

"We're talking about a cabinet minister, a member of the national security committee "And when it comes to our nation's security there is no fine print - everything must be read." Mr Marles said now that it was clear information was put to Mr Dutton's office "it only heightens the need for the minister to come out of hiding and face the Australian people". "Peter Dutton needs to take responsibility and explain to the Australian people what was intended with Operation Fortitude and who made the decision to abandon this operation and what other material is there in his office which he has not read," he said. Prime Minister Tony Abbott on Saturday described the wording of the press release as a "clumsy mistake" but said he would not know what the highest level of the Immigration Department was that had cleared the document.

Foreign Minister Julie Bishop used Network Ten's Bolt Report on Sunday to repeat the government's position that a "poorly-worded press release" was to blame and it was not policy to stop people in the street for random visa checks. She described Labor's response to Friday's events as "completely and utterly over-the-top". But Mr Shorten hit back and said the issue was not whether Labor's reaction was right or wrong, but who in the government dreamed up the idea of having "paramilitary style" immigration officials on the streets of Melbourne "demanding people show their papers". "Labor couldn't have dreamed up this scheme to attack the government," Mr Shorten said. "And now what we see is this Abbott government is so cowardly when it comes to owning their own bad ideas that now they're going to throw some middle-level bureaucrat in a uniform under the bus and say it's their fault."

Greens Leader Richard Di Natale said: "Minister Dutton is showing himself to be a bumbling and incompetent minister who needs to step up or resign from his position". He said the Immigration and Border Protection Department was "effectively, out of control". "His office knew. They were sent a media release outlining what was to happen and do-nothing Dutton did nothing about it," Senator Di Natale said.