Page 6 - Week 01 - Tuesday, 12 February 2008
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to the former staffer in Mrs Burke’s office who was the first to alert me to the treachery surrounding this case when he briefed me in August 2006. But there were many others, such as Michael Hodgman, who did support me, and I am grateful to those such as Gary Kent who had the courage to stand up against this conduct by Liberal Party colleagues who fuelled media interest in the case as they desperately hoped it would spell the end of my career.
I would also like to place on the record my appreciation to the Australian Hotels Association, which had the courage to fight this case. The AHA stood beside me in rejecting spurious claims advanced by Thorpe and his associates, and I am grateful for that. The AHA national affairs manager, Mr Bill Healey, personally telephoned the former Liberal leader, Bill Stefaniak, one week before I was removed from the shadow ministry, and advised Mr Stefaniak that the Liberal Party had nothing to be concerned about and that he was confident no adverse findings would be made against me. Instead of this advice providing reassurance to Mr Stefaniak, it seemed to engender panic and, within days, after I received a series of threatening voice messages and text messages—which I still have—I was removed from the shadow ministry, ostensibly on the basis of a snippet of false evidence read by Mr Stefaniak.
I took issue with Mr Stefaniak’s conduct and his convenient introduction of this new rule that one would be stood aside if any untested allegation is made against one. I have heard all manner of allegations made against almost every member of this place, and certainly against Mr Stefaniak and Mr Smyth, but it was not convenient for him to apply those rules uniformly. And here is a man that the Liberals would expect us to take seriously as a future Attorney-General. I say: heaven help the people of Canberra and the justice system if that were ever to happen.
Mr Stefaniak’s conduct was reprehensible, especially in light of the judgement handed down, and he certainly should now do the honourable thing and resign from the Assembly, but I know he will not have the courage to do so. Failing the resignation of Mr Stefaniak, Mr Seselja should make it clear if this is the conduct he would expect and encourage of a minister, in the unlikely event that he were to become Chief Minister. Of course, that also will not happen, as he is beholden to others for his survival, as the latest instalment in Liberal leadership. He conveniently chooses to isolate my response to this appalling conduct by his predecessor as justification for his own conduct and that of his colleagues. He ignores the factors that led to that situation, of which is he very well aware.
It is a matter of public record that the Liberals threw me out of their parliamentary party, sending me a text message under the signature of Brendan Smyth, and giving me 55 minutes to attend and face their kangaroo court. Even dictatorships engage in a greater semblance of procedural fairness! I ignored Smyth’s demands and resigned from the Liberal Party later that day. This is how the Canberra Liberals respond to 33 years of membership and loyal service—a rump, under the direction of Brendan Smyth, throwing people out of their parliamentary party ranks on a moment’s notice, despite them being overwhelmingly elected by the people and supported by the membership of their party.
With this background, I have placed on the public record the reasons why I am now formally advising the Assembly that I will sit as an Independent on the crossbench. I
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