‘It speaks to the climate of women’: Sugar baby website says Andrew Broad was a #MeToo casualty

A sugar baby website says it won’t “pass judgment” after a member sensationally torpedoed the career of MP Andrew Broad by taking her story to the media.

The “sugar baby” website at the centre of a political scandal has moved to hose down privacy fears of its users after a federal MP was forced out of the job when his interactions on the site were exposed.

Seeking Arrangement says it won’t “pass judgment” after a young woman sensationally torpedoed the career of married Nationals MP Andrew Broad by dishing details of an embarrassing Hong Kong encounter to a gossip magazine.

The controversial dating website, which claims to have more than 20 million members worldwide and about 700,000 in Australia, connects wealthy, in some cases high-profile older men and women with young “sugar babies” so they can come to a “mutually beneficial arrangement”.

But the prospect of discreet meet-ups may not seem quite so sweet for members after seeing cringe-worthy text messages and humiliating details of the MP’s attempts to seduce “Amy” — who goes by the online handle “Sweet Sophia Rose” — splashed across the pages of New Idea this week.

“I’ve booked a flashy room to seduce you back to,” one text message read. “I’m a country guy so I know how to fly a plane, ride a horse and f**k my woman. My intentions are completely dishonourable.”

Another said, “I’m here to make you laugh, ensure you feel safe in my company, make you feel like the most beautiful woman in the room … and then get you naked.”

After asking whether she liked “Aussie accents”, he wrote, “I pull you close, run my strong hands down your back, softly kiss your neck and whisper, ‘G’day mate’.”

The woman said she was sent sexual text messages after agreeing to meet Broad for a date at an expensive Hong Kong restaurant while he was on a partially taxpayer-funded trip to attend a conference.

“He was always so forward and cocky,” she told the magazine. “He was so sure of himself. He kept saying that he was very important and that when he left he was going to have to throw away his phone. He referred to himself as James Bond numerous times.”

She said Broad, who has since resigned from his position as Assistant Minister to the Deputy Prime Minister, “gave me his election speech as to why he should be voted in by the public and I stopped listening because he was so arrogant”.

“He kept grabbing my hand and putting it on his leg, so I excused myself and went to the bathroom and when I came back I told him I was leaving,” she said.

“He led me to believe he was younger and he wasn’t pleasant to be around. I know some people wouldn’t understand the premise of the site but in a lot of cases like mine, it’s simply dinner and a chat, and that’s not what he was looking for.”

Nationals MP Andrew Broad resigned over the ‘sugar baby’ scandal. Picture: Gary Ramage

Amy, aka ‘Sweet Sophia Rose’, met Broad at a Hong Kong restaurant. Picture: New Idea

Seeking Arrangement spokeswoman Brook Urick.

Seeking Arrangement said that while it understood the “significance of Broad’s resignation”, it respected the privacy of its users and “we do not delve into their message history without reports of misconduct or behaviour that goes against our terms of use”.

“There weren’t any terms of use broken here, they both were using the site in a way we deem appropriate,” spokeswoman Brook Urick said in an interview, confirming no action had been taken against Amy for taking her story to the media. “There are things you can be suspended for, that’s not one of them.”

There is no suggestion that anyone involved acted illegally.

Ms Urick said the site took personal privacy “very seriously and it’s up to our members to uphold that in their own relationships”.

“In this particular situation it seems like the member was very open about who he is and the sugar baby he met called him ‘arrogant’,” she said. “It seems like (she) took offence, maybe it was just more of a greater good type thing, she doesn’t think someone like that should be in power.”

Ms Urick suggested it “speaks to the climate of women after the #MeToo movement, they don’t want to see that anymore and they’re going to take control as much as they can”.

“I wouldn’t say that’s something I advise and we don’t like our members to do that, but that’s not something we pass judgment on, just like if he wants to have an extramarital affair we don’t pass judgment,” she said.

She stressed members shouldn’t be concerned. “They’re in control of their own privacy. This wasn’t a slip on Seeking Arrangement, this was a choice of one of our members,” she said.

“If you’re a member and value your privacy, you go about things a little differently. There are a lot of members who don’t even use a picture, don’t reveal their face until the first date. This is a unique situation and for anyone who is concerned about their privacy, we have a lot of content on how to stay safe online.”

Privacy concerns relate not just to images but “also the things you tell someone verbally on a date”. “It was his decision to reveal he’s in a position of power,” she said.

“If you’re in a position of power it might be beneficial not to reveal that to someone you’re going on a date with, perhaps establish a relationship, establish rapport, make sure you can trust that person before telling them your personal information.”

She added, “You don’t have to tell them everything about you.”

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