Erin Molan: The Marles office drama a big headache for Labor

The Labor government spent much of 2021 discussing the treatment of women in parliament and politicised the Brittany Higgins saga. So, allegations of bullying from within Richard Marles’ office could be a headache for the party, writes Erin Molan.

The Albanese government spent much of the pre and post May 2021 election period waxing lyrical about the significance of the treatment of women in parliament.

At the same time they ensured that the Morrison government, and subsequently the opposition, led by Peter Dutton, were labelled as misogynistic cads who didn’t respect nor value the contribution of women within their ranks.

In this context the Brittany Higgins saga was politicised beyond belief by Labor, despite the heinous nature of the allegations, and used as a weapon to try and destroy their opposition.

It comes perhaps as somewhat of a surprise then to learn this week of bullying allegations by Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles’ female chief of staff regarding her time in office.

In desperation, Jo Tarnawsky acknowledged feeling so helpless that she has conducted a public press conference to beg the Prime Minister to keep his word and ensure Parliament House is a safe working environment, and space, for women.

Opposition leader Peter Dutton responded by commenting that Ms Tarnawsky has ‘credibility’ and is ‘incredibly brave’, and he labelled her story incredibly concerning. He further referenced the tragic death of Kimberley Kitching, who had accused senior Labor ministers of bullying her during her time in the Senate, claims they’ve always denied.

So if precedents come into play here, Ms Higgins’ case becomes a relevant point of reference.

While conceding readily the difference in nature and severity of complaint of the two complaints, fundamentally both centre around the same issue of the treatment of women in Parliament.

Richard Marles' chief of staff, Jo Tarnawsky holds a press conference at Parliament House in Canberra. Picture: NewsWire / Martin Ollman

If, as the current government insists, the Higgins situation wasn’t politicised, then we should expect the exact same treatment here?

So are we to witness, following an unrelenting hammering during question time, the focus moving from Ms Tarnawsky and her allegations, to discussion and investigation of uncontested versions of events being accepted fully as fact?

And the matter being brought to a close by…drumroll….a massive, in fact eye-watering, payout on behalf of taxpayers, without Minster Marles permitted to participate, in any capacity, in any part of the complicated and intricate mediation process?

Minister Marles hasn’t been accused of bullying himself - the issue, according to Tarnawsky, is the way he handled her complaints. He has also denied her claims.

So, if what Higgins’ old boss defence minister Linda Reynolds has gone through, as someone accused of mishandling the alleged incident in her office, something she strongly refutes and a claim a court has debunked in civil proceedings, then are we to watch the same horrific chain of events occur for Marles?

Will he lose his career over this, as she claims she did?

If this version of events doesn’t come to pass, then surely we can reasonably assume that maybe the manner in which Ms Higgins was treated was indeed much more political than anything else.

Acting Prime Minister and Minister for Defence, Richard Marles during Question Time at Parliament House in Canberra. Picture: NewsWire / Martin Ollman

The focus was not on her welfare, or that of her accused or others involved, nor on a robust examination of the allegations against prevailing workplace requirements and standards, but on the weaponisation of a heinous allegation that was not at the time of the monumental settlement, nor since, been proven to a criminal standard.

The danger of selling one’s political soul when one’s opponent is in trouble is that the very thing you attack them for inevitably comes back to bite you.

It’s why politicians almost never criticise each other over travel expenses or staffing allocations - not necessarily perks of the job but areas where there is some flexibility in interpretation and application of complex guidelines. It’s an unspoken rule that all seem happy to abide by.

When Peter Dutton’s son made news recently it was considered off limits.

Above politics so to speak.

The same situation with the Prime Minister’s son and headlines involving him - the opposition treaded very carefully.

Maybe, just maybe, when it comes to the welfare of people, human beings within the system, the same rules should apply. They should be protected and helped rather than used and discarded.

Join me for ‘Erin’ this afternoon at 5pm on Sky News Australia where the Philippines Defence Minister and Michael Pezzullo are my special guests. I’ll also talk about my trip this week to Indonesia, where I met with the expected next Foreign Affairs Minister under new President Prabowo

Originally published as Erin Molan: The Marles office drama a big headache for Labor