Mark Latham apologises for secretly photographing Liberal MP in parliament

Mark Latham has apologised to Liberal MP Susan Carter for “any hurt or disrespect” after secretly taking photos of her on the floor of parliament and sharing them.

Liberal MP Susan Carter said Mark Latham has apologised for “any hurt or disrespect” caused when he secretly photographed her on the floor of parliament. Picture: NewsWire / Damian Shaw

Mark Latham has apologised to a Liberal MP who he secretly photographed on the floor of parliament, acknowledging his actions were “inappropriate”.

Liberal MP Susan Carter told The Daily Telegraph that Mr Latham apologised for “any hurt or disrespect” on Thursday afternoon, after the Telegraph revealed the embattled MP had taken photos of female colleagues without their knowledge before sharing them with then-partner Nathalie Matthews.

“I received a phone call from Mark Latham in which he made a very genuine apology, he was concerned that private communications had come into the public domain that were never intended to hurt me,” Ms Carter told the Telegraph.

“He acknowledged (the messages) were inappropriate, but they were always intended to be private.

“He apologised for any hurt or disrespect,” she said.

Mr Latham apologised after Acting Opposition Leader Damien Tudehope said the MP had “tainted his ability to contribute” to parliamentary debates.

Despite that, Mr Tudehope defended siding with Mr Latham to redefine workplace sexual harassment, as part of changes to the workers compensation scheme.

Mr Tudehope conceded the association with Mr Latham was “a problem,” but said the Opposition could still work with the beleaguered MP.

”Clearly in the circumstances which have occurred in the last week, having Mark Latham’s name attached to anything relating to sexual activity is a problem,” he said.

“But don’t just dismiss the amendment because we formed a view about whether Mark Latham accepts it or not.”

The comments came after Housing Minister Rose Jackson called on other MPs to “shun” Mr Latham, who she labelled a “pig”.

“It’s extremely confronting for me to think that in a workplace there’s someone who thinks it’s acceptable to take photos of you and to share them with derogatory comments,” she said.

Mr Latham has copped increasing criticism for his parliamentary behaviour following his ex-partner accusing him of “sustained” abuse.

Mr Latham has denied the allegations, labelling them “comically false and ridiculous”.

However, he admitted to sending explicit text messages in parliament.

The latest scrutiny over Mr Latham’s behaviour comes three years after the MP refused to take part in a probe into bullying and harassment in parliament.

In 2022, Mr Latham labelled a parliamentary bullying review a “waste of money,” declaring that getting offended was “a choice”.

He told the review that he and his staff would not be participating

“Our office didn‘t participate … We haven’t had any big turnover of staff, we don’t find this to be (a) toxic workplace,” he said in 2022.

Latham referenced the review, conducted by former Sex Discrimination Commissioner Elizabeth Broderick, in WhatsApp messages to Ms Matthews, when he suggested he wanted a “3sum (sic)” with Greens MP Abigail Boyd.

Mr Latham told his then-partner he was “too scared” to compliment her on her “f*k me boots” following the Broderick Review, which found bullying was rife on Macquarie Street.