Peter Dutton expels David Van after former LNP senator Linda Stoker said he groped her

Peter Dutton expelled David Van after former LNP senator Amanda Stoker alleged he groped her and other Liberal women accused him of inappropriate conduct.

Senator David Van in the upper house on Thursday. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Martin Ollman

Peter Dutton has expelled ­Victorian senator David Van from his party room after former LNP senator Amanda Stoker alleged he groped her on the bottom in parliament and other Liberal Party women accused him of inappropriate conduct.

The Opposition Leader ­removed Senator Van on Thursday after internal complaints were lodged with his office following a statement by independent Lidia Thorpe in the Senate that the ­Victorian backbencher made her feel “unsafe”.

Ms Stoker – a senior Liberal figure in Queensland who is close to Mr Dutton – alleged that Senator Van touched her bottom twice at a 2020 drinks event in a parliamentary office.

A second former Liberal MP, who reported Senator Van’s ­behaviour at the time to senior Morrison government figures, has also alleged inappropriate conduct by Senator Van.

Senior Morrison government insiders told The Australian they held “significant concerns” about Senator Van’s alleged behaviour.

Mr Dutton took swift action to dump Senator Van and referred allegations to the new Parlia­mentary Workplace Support ­Service, which was formed following the independent review into commonwealth parliamentary workplaces by former sex ­discrimination commissioner Kate Jenkins.

Independent Senator Lidia Thorpe on Thursday. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Martin Ollman

“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,” Mr Dutton said on Thursday.

“As such, I met with Senator Van (and advised him) of my decision that he should no longer sit in the Liberal Party party room.”

The Australian understands that female staffers, MPs and j­ournalists had previously been told to steer clear of Senator Van, whose office was moved away from Senator Thorpe’s in 2021 after she raised concerns about his behaviour.

“I was afraid to walk out of the office, I would open the doors slightly and checked the coast was clear before stepping out,” she told the Senate.

“It was to the degree that I had to be accompanied by someone whenever I walked inside this building.”

The Liberal Party scandal ­relieved pressure on Anthony A­lbanese over whether senior Labor figures colluded with Brittany Higgins’ fiance David Sharaz to weaponise rape allegations against the Morrison government and their roles in authorising a multimillion-dollar payout.

Ms Stoker on Thursday night released a statement alleging that Senator Van “inappropriately touched me at an informal social gathering in a parliamentary ­office”.

“He did so by squeezing my bottom twice. By its nature and by its repetition, it was not accidental. That action was not appropriate. It was unprofessional and uninvited,” the former Queensland LNP senator said.

“I raised the matter with Senator Van at a meeting the following day. I described the action, told him it was unacceptable, and that it was not to be repeated.

“He apologised and said he would never do it again. I accepted his apology and his undertaking.

“I believe all women should be free from unwanted advances and confident to speak up immediately and be respected for doing so.”

Former LNP senator Amanda Stoker. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Gary Ramage

Ms Stoker said she advised a senior female colleague about the alleged incident and the actions she took 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”.

The former Queensland ­senator said she had used internal processes for Senator Van’s ­behaviour to be addressed confidentially.

“I would have preferred that the matter be resolved privately and finally – as I thought it was,” Ms Stoker said.

“However, following Senator Thorpe’s allegations, it is now clear that is no longer tenable. I do not know of any other similar events or reports.”

Senator Van did not respond to The Australian in regards to Ms Stoker’s allegations.

Allegations against Senator Van aired by Senator Thorpe under parliamentary privilege and fresh revelations of alleged ­inappropriate behaviour towards former Liberal MPs are expected to build pressure on the Victorian to resign.

Previous attempts by senior Liberal figures to push Senator Van out of parliament were unsuccessful. His term is due to expire at the 2025 election.

Arriving in Melbourne on Thursday night, Senator Van defiantly said “no” when asked if he believed Mr Dutton’s decision to boot him from the party room was fair.

Senator Van pictured with partner, Nerilee Rockman, at the 2019 Midwinter Ball in Canberra. Picture: Facebook

Mr Dutton – who will deliver the keynote address at the Liberal Party’s 63rd federal council ­meeting in Canberra on Saturday – said he was not making “any judgment on the veracity of ­allegations or any individual’s guilt or innocence”.

“Obviously, there’s an independent process with the PWSS, the Parliamentary Workplace Support Service, to get underway,” the Opposition Leader said.

“On my instruction, my office, last night and again today, has spoken with the PWSS, and they will conduct their considerations of these matters.”

Senator Thorpe on Thursday doubled down on her allegations that Senator Van was a “perpetrator”, telling the Senate he was among a number of men in parliament who had made her feel ­“unsafe” in the building.

In a tearful address to the upper house, the former Greens senator said she had been “propositioned and inappropriately touched” in the hallways and corridors of parliament and called on the government to immediately increase the number of security guards and cameras in the building.

“As all women that have walked the corridors of this building know, it is not a safe place,” Senator Thorpe said.

“You are often alone in long corridors with no windows and in stairwells hidden from view, where there are no cameras.

Senator Van on a trip to Ukraine.

“I experienced sexual comments and was inappropriately propositioned by powerful men. One man followed me and cornered me in a stairwell.

“There are different understandings of what amounts to sexual assault and what I experienced has been being followed, aggressively propositioned and inappropriately touched.”

Senator Van has rejected all allegations made by Senator Thorpe and said nothing she said was true, but did not want the matter to have a negative impact on the Liberals and so had agreed to resign from the party.

“There should and must be an investigation into these outrageous claims so that they can be proved to be false,” Senator Van told the Senate. “I will fully co-operate with the investigators and answer any questions that they may have of me. Senator Thorpe should do the same.”

Senator Thorpe did not identify the man ho cornered her in the stairwell but said the alleged incident occurred in early 2021, when Brittany Higgins came forward with her allegation she was raped in parliament.

“I did not want to have anything taken away from it and her experience and her bravery in coming forward,” she said.

She confirmed she spoke to Ms Jenkins about her experiences, as part of her inquiry into the culture of parliament that culminated in the Set the Standard report.

Senator Thorpe said she could “not stay silent” when Senator Van spoke about the importance of women’s safety in parliament on Wednesday, which prompted her to use parliamentary privilege to allege he had harassed and sexually assaulted her.

The Australian understands that under ACT law, sexual or indecent assault complaints must be victim-led. A third-party cannot refer complaints to the Australian Federal Police.

Ms Jenkins’ review into commonwealth parliamentary workplaces said that “due to the sensitive and distressing nature of sexual assault, survey respondents were not asked to describe the ­nature of their experience”.

“However, people shared their experiences of sexual assault with the commission in submissions and interviews …” the report said.

The top sexual harassment behaviours included sexually suggestive comments or jokes, intrusive questions about private lives and physical appearances, inappropriate staring or leering, unwelcome touching, hugging, cornering or kissing, inappropriate physical contact and repeated or inappropriate investigations to go out on dates.