Anthony Albanese renter Chrissy Flanagan reveals shocking online trolling abuse
The woman who rents a home owned by Anthony Albanese says she’s suffered online abuse since going public about her landlord.
Federal Election
Don't miss out on the headlines from Federal Election. Followed categories will be added to My News.
The woman who revealed she has Anthony Albanese as her landlord has opened up about receiving shocking abusive messages since going public about renting from the Labor leader.
Chrissy Flanagan, who runs a sausage restaurant in Sydney’s inner west, released a video on TikTok telling people she was given a 25 per cent rent reduction by Mr Albanese at the start of the pandemic.
She said that the Labor leader – who has a large property portfolio – kept the cheaper rent in place for the home where she lives ever since.
“He’s just a good dude, he’s a really good dude,” she says in the video.
But since sharing her story, the self-confessed “Albo superfan” said she had copped a wave of abuse online from people thinking she was a paid actor for the Labor Party.
She runs The Sausage Factory in Dulwich Hill, in Mr Albanese’s electorate, where she has a shrine for “hot Albo”.
She also has a background working in communications for politicians and was a campaign assistant for the Australian Labor Party’s NSW Head Office when she finished university in 2003.
But Ms Flanagan said she didn’t know she was going to rent her new home from Mr Albanese until she signed her lease and saw his name on the document, as she had been dealing with a real estate agent.
The Labor Party has said it did not ask Ms Flanagan to put up the video.
“If you are the lying dog who is a Labor staffer, your business is finished,” one abusive message sent to her said.
Another message sent to her Facebook says: “What a lying piece of shit you are!!! caught out … love it.”
Another person emailed accusing her of being a “blatant liar” for “moneybags Albo”.
“How disgusting to put a piece in the news like that,” the email said.
“You have just caused untold damage to struggling landlords across the country who can’t afford to reduce rents like ‘Money Bags’ Albo can.
“ … No sausages for me they might be laced. What other untruths have you told.”
Another person even gave her business a one-star review, calling her sausages “overpriced and underwhelming”.
In another email she was called a clown.
“What a clown you are and have shown the Australian public how much of a fool you are!” it said.
“I hope your business is destroyed and you end up on the streets you clown!”
Ms Flanagan said since her TikTok video had blown up she’d received more than 50 messages directly telling her she was disgusting and repulsive.
“I haven't worked directly for any Labor politicians in more than a decade,” she said.
She said most recently she had worked for Lucy Turnbull, former Liberal Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull’s wife, as a contractor for the Greater Sydney Commission.
She also worked with and for the Western Parkland Authority last year where she had regular contact with NSW Liberal minister Stuart Ayres.
“In the last government job I was in I was regularly working with Stuart Ayres, who I think is an awesome guy, and I have nothing but admiration and respect for Lucy Turnbull,” she said.
NCA NewsWire has independently confirmed her employment with both organisations and her contact with Mr Ayres.
“Everyone is saying I’m a paid actor which is obviously false,” Ms Flanagan said.
“I’m not on anyone’s payroll. I’m independent and entitled to say the truth.
Ms Flanagan said when she left university she worked for the Australian Labor Party handing out vote-from-home forms for the local Burwood Council campaign.
After that she worked for Virginia Judge, the Labor MP for Strathfield and then Reba Meagher, Labor’s Fair Trading Minister.
She then worked in government departments.
“The vast majority of the last two decades I’ve been working in government regardless of who is in government,” Ms Flanagan said.
But Ms Flanagan has posted regularly about her shrine for ”Hot Albo” and makes no secret of the fact she’s a Labor voter.
In one picture she poses in front of her Albo shrine with a pink knitted sausage.
“I have plans for you, #hotalbo. Knitted sausage plans. I’m in at The Sausage Factory all night if you care to collaborate on this living @AlboMP shrine,” she wrote.
Ms Flanagan said she made her shrine after Mr Albanese’s office handed out Hot Albo corflutes to local businesses during the last campaign.
“A lot of businesses got copies of them and several of them still have them up,” she said.
“He is our local member and incredibly popular, I’ve had the shrine up for him for a number of years and no one has objected to it being there.”
Ms Flanagan first posted a selfie with Mr Albanese in 2016.
“I never met him through my work with any government. I never worked with the federal government at all.
“I only met him because he shows up for local businesses and comes and supports.”
She said when she collaborated with him on a democracy sausage she dealt with his office before he turned up for a press appearance.
“I’m a publicist by trade so was looking to leverage the democracy sausage period, it is pretty much Christmas for sausages,” she said.
“I pitched to his office to do a press conference launching democracy sausage season.”
She said on another occasion she was doing a sausage making demonstration at a local festival and Mr Albanese crashed it and took over in front of cameras.
“Before I ran into him a couple of times at the pub. I wouldn’t have spoken to him more than 15 minutes in those times,” she said.
“I’ve never had dinner with him, I’ve never hung out with him. I wish I was his friend, he’s a cool guy.”
Originally published as Anthony Albanese renter Chrissy Flanagan reveals shocking online trolling abuse
‘Bad tax’: Big call on stamp duty
The federal housing minister is signalling a major change that could affect millions of property owners.
Big business weighs in on housing crisis
A powerful business lobby is calling for major reforms to fix the country’s housing crisis.