Emma Husar ‘used Comcar to visit her divorce lawyer’

Labor MP Emma Husar is alleged to have used the taxpayer-funded Comcar limousine service to visit her divorce lawyer.

Emma Husar. Picture: Kym Smith

Labor MP Emma Husar is alleged to have used the taxpayer-funded Comcar limousine service to visit her divorce lawyer, according to sensational claims understood to be before the internal Labor Party inquiry into her conduct.

A former staffer, Blake Mooney, who was moved into another job after rows with Ms Husar, including over entitlements, questioned her use of the Comcar for private business when he worked for her, according to party sources. Mr Mooney also questioned her booking a flight to Melbourne on parliamentary entitlements to ­attend a function by progressive political group Emily’s List.

Ms Husar later forced Mr Mooney out of her office and is claimed to have complained to Bill Shorten’s former chief of staff, ­Andrew Thomas, about his conduct last year.

Ms Husar and the Opposition Leader’s office declined to comment on the fresh claims last night. Mr Mooney also declined to comment.

Ms Husar announced last night she was taking “personal leave” in light of the mounting ­allegations against her. “The past few days have been incredibly difficult for my family,” she said. “I’m a single mum and my first priority is the safety and wellbeing of my children. I have received threatening messages, including threats of ­violence and have referred them to the Australian Federal Police.

“The best thing for me and my family right now is for us to be out of the spotlight so I can access ­support.”

Ms Husar is facing an internal NSW Labor inquiry, run by barrister Jack Whelan, involving statements from 20 people formerly in her employ, including complaints that staff were forced to pick up dog excrement, perform household chores, that she gave her nanny a job in her office and has a staffer, Vanessa Song, living with her performing domestic duties.

There are also claims she ­referred to staffers as “c...s” and “f..kwits”.

Screengrab of footage showing a Emma Husar staff member taking the MP’s dog for a walk. Picture: Seven News

The staff member cleans up the dog excrement. Picture: Seven News.

Ms Husar has posted photographs on Instagram of her taking her dogs to work.

Among those The Australian has established worked for Ms Husar and then left her office is the wife of Chris Bowen’s chief of staff James Cullen, Clare Cullen, who quit after a few months, as did a former personal assistant to former NSW premier Kristina Keneally and Opposition Leader Luke Foley, Lee Beeliar, who quit after just a few weeks in the Husar office. Another to leave the office was Jeremy Anderson, the son of former police minister Peter Anderson. Yet another is Mr Mooney, now a staffer for Kate Washington, the NSW member for Port Stephens.

But despite the departures and allegations, there is rumoured to be a push in the top ranks of the Labor Party for Ms Husar to survive, rather than be disendorsed, when the matter is brought before the NSW Labor Party’s administrative committee meeting early next month. Ms Husar has been close to Mr Shorten and his wife, Chloe, as well as staff in Mr Shorten’s office.

Yesterday, Mr Shorten said of Ms Husar: “I think she’s been a hardworking member in her electorate, and I’m going to let the ­investigation by NSW Labor Party run its course.”

Asked whether he would personally investigate the allegations, Mr Shorten said a procedure was in place. “The complaints were made to the NSW Labor Party. They’re investigating it, and until that investigation is concluded, I’m not going to add any more,” he said.

Mr Shorten’s comments came after another NSW Labor MP, Mike Kelly, defended Ms Husar against claims she misused staff, after revelations in The Australian that she had employed her nanny in her office, arguing on Sky News that taxpayer-funded babysitting is a “small price to pay” for “facilitating the ability of women to participate in our parliament”.

Asked when and how he first learnt of the allegations against Ms Husar, Mr Shorten said: “My office notified me about Wednesday of last week.”

Asked where his office had got the information, Mr Shorten said: “I guess they were told by the NSW branch, and maybe there was a media inquiry.”

But The Australian has established Mr Shorten’s office was made aware of a “volatile staffing issue” in Ms Husar’s office as early as March last year when the Labor MP approached senior ­advisers of the Opposition Leader following an argument she had with Mr Mooney.

The incident, which occurred when parliament was sitting, led to Mr Mooney being moved out of Ms Husar’s office in quick time following the complaint from Ms Husar. She allegedly told Mr Shorten’s office that tensions with her staffer had triggered ­“repressed” trauma she had ­experienced earlier in life.

A woman picks up after MP Emma Husar's dog outside of her electorate office. Picture: Seven News

The Australian asked Mr Thomas yesterday if he could recall Ms Husar or Mr Mooney ­approaching him last year to raise issues of conflict that had arisen between them in the Labor MP’s office. Mr Thomas, who was Mr Shorten’s chief of staff at the time Mr Mooney fell out with Ms Husar, said he would prefer not to comment on the matter.

“I don’t have anything to say, that issue should be put through Mr Shorten’s office,” he said.

It is understood that NSW ALP head office intervened after the blow-up in Ms Husar’s office by helping to arrange Mr Mooney’s swift exit and move him to the office of Ms Washington, for whom he still works as a staffer.

Soon after she entered parliament after being elected in July 2016, Ms Husar became part of Mr Shorten’s office clique, ­becoming friendly with Chloe Shorten and senior staff including Mr Thomas and current chief of staff Ryan Liddell.

Ms Shorten posted a glowing tribute to Ms Husar on Facebook in March this year, saying “in awe of my friend, the inspirational and talented @emmahusarmp for her determination and dedication to support survivors and end domestic violence once and for all”.

The tribute followed Ms Husar’s emotional speech to parliament about her experience with domestic violence, which received wide news coverage.

Questions were put to Ms Husar yesterday. A spokesman for Mr Shorten responded by saying neither Ms Husar nor Mr Shorten’s office would be commenting on specifics related to the investigation, including the use of the Comcar.