Third allegation against ex-Liberal Senator David Van accused of ‘squeezing’ colleague’s bottom
Opposition leader Peter Dutton urges “utterly shattered” ousted David Van to resign and seek help, and confirms a third accuser in addition to Senator Lidia Thorpe, and former Liberal senator Amanda Stoker.
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Opposition Leader Peter Dutton urged Senator David Van to resign following allegations made by Senator Lidia Thorpe and former Liberal Senator Amanda Stoker.
“I think it’s in everyone’s best interest that he resigns from Parliament and I hope he does that sooner rather than later and seeks the help that he needs,” Mr Dutton said to Ray Hadley on the 2GB morning show.
It came as Mr Dutton confirmed that further accusations have been made against the now-crossbench senator.
“There’s a person who I understand doesn’t want to be identified, I’ve given the details to the workplace authority that they’ll investigate,” Dutton said.
“But they’re allegations of a similar nature to those relating to Senator Stoker and it caused me great concern.
“I met with Senator Van and I wasn’t satisfied with his response or denial.”
Earlier, on the Today show, Mr Ditton said he doesn’t regret removing Van from the party room.
‘I made a decision yesterday based on all of the information that was available to me … that’s a decision I don’t regret at all,” he said.
“I believe it is in the best interests of the Liberal Party and that’s what I have acted upon and I don’t want Senator Van sitting in our party room.
“I have made that clear.”
Mr Dutton said the alleged behaviour was unacceptable.
‘UTTERLY SHATTERED’
Meanwhile, Senator Van said he will not be making any further public statements on the matter.
“I’m utterly shattered by the events of the past few days and stunned that my good reputation can be so wantonly savaged without due process or accountability,” a statement obtained by 2GB read.
“I will fully co-operate with whatever process Mr Dutton proposes to determine these matters as quickly and fairly as possible.
“While I understand the public interest is high, I will not be making any public statements on the allegations until the proper examination.”
‘SQUEEZING’ COLLEAGUES BOTTOM
Confirmation of a third claim followed former Liberal senator Amanda Stoker accused her then-colleague David Van of “inappropriately” touching her bottom twice at a social gathering in parliament, three years before he was ousted from the party over harassment allegations.
Former Queensland senator Amanda Stoker came forward on Thursday after Opposition Leader Peter Dutton asked Mr Van to leave the federal Liberal Party room amid allegations of sexual harassment made by independent Senator Lidia Thorpe in parliament.
Ms Stoker said she made an “internal” complaint after the alleged incident in November 2020, which she described as “not appropriate,” “unprofessional” and “uninvited”.
“Senator Van inappropriately touched me at an informal social gathering in a parliamentary office,” Ms Stoker said in a statement.
“He did so by squeezing my bottom twice. By its nature and by its repetition, it was not accidental.”
Ms Stoker said she raised the matter with Mr Van at a meeting the following day, telling him it was “unacceptable” and that it was “not to be repeated”.
“He apologised and said he would never do it again,” she said. “I accepted his apology and his undertaking.”
Ms Stoker said “contemporaneous notes” of the meeting were taken and it “never happened again,” but she had taken steps to internally report the matter to ensure there was a record of the incident.
“I believe all women should be free from unwanted advances and confident to speak up immediately and be respected for doing so,” she said.
“I promptly advised a senior female colleague about the incident and of the action I had taken.
“I did so to ensure that if there were any other incidents of which I was not aware, or any future reports, they could be dealt with appropriately.”
Ms Stoker said while the alleged incident was “not a good experience” and she “took it very seriously” she did not want the behaviour to “define me or any other woman”.
“I simply wanted to ensure his behaviour was never repeated,” she said.
“So I used the internal process for his behaviour to be addressed, whilst asking for it to be kept confidential.
“I would have preferred that the matter be resolved privately and finally — as I thought it was.
“However, following Senator Thorpe’s allegations, it is now clear that is no longer tenable.”
Ms Stoker said she did not know of “any other similar events or reports”.
Mr Van, who returned to Victoria on Thursday night despite the senate being due to sit on Friday, has been contacted for comment regarding Ms Stoker’s allegations.
Mr Van has strenuously denied allegations of sexual harassment and assault made by Ms Thorpe.
Ms Thorpe told the senate Mr Van had “followed,” “aggressively propositioned” and “inappropriately touched” her, which she believed amounted to “sexual assault”.
Following these alleged incidents Ms Thorpe asked for Mr Van to be relocated to an office further from her own, which the former Morrison government facilitated.
Mr Dutton announced he had asked Mr Van to move to the crossbench after receiving further allegations against the Victorian senator, who entered parliament in 2019.
“Since the airing of Senator Thorpe’s allegation … further allegations in relation to Senator Van have been brought to my attention overnight and this morning,” he said.
“As such, I met with Senator Van … (and) advised Senator Van of my decision that he should no longer sit in the Liberal Party party room.”
Mr Dutton said he was “not making any judgment on the veracity of allegations, or any individual’s guilt or innocence,” and had instructed the Parliamentary Workplace Support Service to conduct “an independent process” to consider the claims.
Mr Van told the senate he had agreed to move offices to “protect myself against (Ms Thorpe’s) irrational concerns and ensure the effective and smooth running of the parliament”.
He also said he agreed to leave the party room to protect the Liberals and called for an independent investigation into what he described as “outrageous claims” by Ms Thorpe.
Coalition senate leader Simon Birmingham said he was made aware of Ms Thorpe’s “suggestions of conduct” by Mr Van that she “felt uncomfortable with” two years ago.
“They were raised with me by the then-leader of the Greens and related to the extent of time Senator Van had spent around Senator Thorpe, the proximity of his office to her office,” he said.
Mr Birmingham said the Greens had requested two actions in relation to the matter — that Mr Van’s office be moved, and for him to “keep some distance” from Ms Thorpe.
“Those requests were acted upon to the satisfaction at the time of the Greens leadership,” he said.
In December 2021 Mr Van issued an “unreserved apology” after he was accused of making growling dog noises at Tasmanian Senator Jacqui Lambie, though he denied the allegation. Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young and Labor Senator Penny Wong both claimed at the time to have heard growling noises being made toward Ms Lambie as she spoke during Question Time, though were not sure who had been making the sound.
Mr Van later told the senate he apologised for his “disorderly” interjections as Ms Lambie had been speaking, though claimed he had not growled.
Originally published as Third allegation against ex-Liberal Senator David Van accused of ‘squeezing’ colleague’s bottom
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