‘What went on and how?’ West Australian Liberal senators call for Senate inquiry into ABC’s role in Woodside CEO home protest
The WA Liberals are seeking a Senate inquiry into the ABC’s conduct at the home protest against Woodside Energy chief Meg O’Neill, and want backing from Labor.
Western Australia’s Liberal senators have called for a Senate inquiry into the ABC’s conduct over the protest last week at the Perth home of Woodside Energy chief executive Meg O’Neill, and want backing from the Labor government.
This comes after Sky News on Sunday published a photo of ABC crew on the driveway of Ms O’Neill’s home as a team of environmental protesters invaded the property.
The imagery cast doubt on ABC’s claim that the journalists did not go onto private property themselves during the attempted raid.
Senator Michaela Cash, the deputy leader of the opposition in the Senate and one of five Liberal senators from WA, said the conduct of the ABC in attending the protest should be publicly examined.
“The picture of the crew in the driveway of Ms O’Neill’s home calls into question the ABCs explanation of events last week,” Senator Cash said.
“A Senate inquiry has the power to get to the bottom of exactly what went on and how the ABC came to be at the protest. We call on the Albanese government to back the inquiry.”
Communications Minister Michelle Rowland has also sought additional information in relation to the incident outside the Woodside CEO’s home but had no updates on the matter on Sunday.
Opposition communications spokesman David Coleman urged the minister to “provide clear and transparent answers to the Australian public on this whole affair’’.
The ABC’s claim a Four Corners’ film crew remained on public land when it turned up at a climate protest outside Ms O’Neill’s home is now in dispute after new evidence emerged.
A photograph of an ABC crew on the driveway of Ms O’Neill’s home – obtained by Sky News Australia and revealed on Sunday – has led to serious doubts that its journalists and camera crew were on public land when they arrived at her home at dawn on Tuesday morning.
The oil and gas group Woodside sent the photo to the ABC and the broadcaster’s managing director David Anderson sent a letter of regret to Ms O’Neill but not an apology, Sky News reported.
The public broadcaster has started an investigation into the matter. The ABC expanded its investigation into the conduct of the crew, who were invited to the property by protesters looking to storm Ms O’Neill’s house.
A group of climate activists from Disrupt Burrup Hub were at Ms O’Neill’s City Beach property when the crew from the ABC’s flagship investigative program Four Corners arrived.
This caused outrage including from WA Premier Roger Cook who said the activists’ conduct was “completely unacceptable and should be condemned by everyone, including the ABC”.
The ABC communications department has subsequently amended a statement it published on its website last week that stated, “just prior to the action the team received a tip to go to an address, they had no knowledge what was at the address or that it was someone’s house”.
Four protesters were arrested by WA police outside the home.
The ABC has maintained that there was no collusion between the Four Corners’ crew and the activists.
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