Tasmanian Labor keeps silent on sex assault allegation

Labor is refusing to explain why it persisted with the candidacy of a doctor after he learned he faced a historic sex assault allegation.

Tasmanian Labor leader Rebecca White and Labor Huon Member of the Legislative Council Bastian Seidel at Blackmans Bay Beach. Picture Chris Kidd

Tasmanian Labor is refusing to explain why it persisted with the candidacy of a prominent doctor after he learned he faced a historic sexual assault allegation.

Labor announced Huon Valley doctor Bastian Seidel as its candidate for the state upper house seat of Huon in February 2020 and he was elected in ­August.

The Australian has learned that at the time Dr Seidel stood for the seat he was aware the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency had received the allegation.

In September 2019, a former cancer patient lodged a complaint with Ahpra alleging that Dr ­Seidel placed his hand on her ­vagina after taking blood from her in 2010.

Ahpra began an investigation in October 2019 and it is ­understood Dr Seidel, a former president of the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners, was informed in November 2019.

Dr Seidel, 45, strongly denied the allegation in his formal ­response to Ahpra, and told the regulator no such incident ­occurred. The Australian does not assert any wrongdoing on his part.

It was not until December 7, 2020, that the Medical Board ­decided not to take any further action and advised Dr Seidel — by then an upper house MP — and the complainant of this ­decision.

In its decision, the board said while “it is possible the incident occurred as described” it was “not able to form a reasonable belief that Dr Seidel had engaged in ­behaviour that constitutes professional misconduct”.

On January 30 this year, the woman, now 50, made a complaint about Dr Seidel’s alleged conduct to Tasmania Police. She told The Australian that two ­detectives advised her the statute of limitations prevented any prospect of charges.

The Australian asked Dr ­Seidel if he had informed the ALP or Labor leader Rebecca White of the complaint before standing for election.

Dr Seidel refused to comment.

Ms White and ALP state secretary Stuart Benson also refused to say whether the star candidate had informed them of the ­complaint and investigation ­before the August upper house election.

The Australian understands, however, that Dr Seidel did inform Mr Benson of a serious complaint against him before his candidacy was announced.

The complainant told The Australian she believed it would be “absolutely unacceptable” if Labor had known about her complaint but opted to continue Dr Seidel’s candidacy while it was being investigated.

“Did they (Labor) think ‘that’s fine, don’t worry about it’?” she said. “I don’t think that would have been the right thing to do. It is unacceptable — absolutely ­unacceptable. Surely the voters had a right to know.”

Dr Seidel was this month ­promoted to Labor’s frontbench, as health spokesman, by Ms White, who has in recent months repeatedly demanded more transparency around accusations of historic child sex abuse levelled against government employees.

Ms White recently said Dr ­Seidel’s election in Huon, a seat Labor had not held since 1942, showed her party could win ­majority government at the next state election “with good candidates”.

The complainant said she had taken nine years to lodge a complaint because she had struggled with family illnesses, bereavement and her own serious, debilitating illnesses.

She said she was deeply disappointed with the Ahpra process, which took 16 months and did not provide her, Dr Seidel or others an opportunity to be questioned in person about their evidence.

“The process just makes a bad situation worse,” the complainant said.

Ahpra said it was unable to comment on specific cases.