Roman Quaedvlieg claim of third au pair debunked

The Department of Home Affairs has confirmed Peter Dutton intervened in just two au pair visa cases.

Peter Dutton and Roman Quaedvlieg back in 2015. Picture: AAP

The Department of Home Affairs has confirmed Peter Dutton intervened in just two au pair visa cases despite sacked Australian Border Force commissioner Roman Quaedvlieg claiming that his former Queensland Police colleague was involved in a third matter.

Responding to questions on notice from the Labor-led committee looking into the au pair controversy, the department said Mr Dutton had made 24 visitor visa grants during his time as immigration as Home Affairs Minister.

Only two of those visa holders — French woman Alexandra Deuwel and Italian woman Michela Marchisio — “may have been engaged in work related activity as an au pair”.

Liberal senator Eric Abetz seized on the department’s answers, declaring they “completely discredited” Mr Quaedvlieg’s written evidence to the Senate committee after he alleged Mr Dutton was involved in a third au pair visa case.

Senator Abetz also called on Bill Shorten to explain the links between his office and Mr Quaedvlieg, following revelations the latter’s chief of staff was now a senior adviser to the Opposition Leader.

“If it wasn’t already, it’s now completely clear that Minister Dutton has acted entirely appropriately whereas it appears that Labor senators have been foolishly marched in by Mr Shorten’s office on the basis of false information,” Senator Abetz said.

Mr Quaedvlieg today claimed the department’s evidence was “incomplete” and said he would only appear before the inquiry if departmental officials conducted a comprehensive examination of operational records.

“I’ll appear once the department has done a proper discover process as per my second submission. Read it carefully and you’ll note that I’m adamant the conversation took place; that there will be records of a detention which align with my recollection, and possibly but not necessarily an intervention brief,” he told The Australian.

Labor senator Louise Pratt, chair of the au pair inquiry, has written to the department claiming there was an “apparent inconsistency” between the department’s evidence and documents tabled by Mr Dutton in parliament. The opposition believes the department has missed six visitor visa cases.

“As you would be well are, the inconsistency between the answers provided by the department to the Senate Inquiry in comparison to documents tabled in Parliament is of great concern to me in my role as Chair of the Legal and Constitutional Affairs References Committee,” she said in a letter to Home Affairs secretary Michael Pezzullo.

“I request the department provides clarity to this particular answer as a matter of urgency.”

The Australian contacted the department but had not heard back by deadline.

Mr Quaedvlieg originally claimed Mr Dutton’s chief of staff Craig Maclachlan called him in June 2015 seeking help for “the boss’s mate in Brisbane” regarding Ms Marchisio’s case but Mr Dutton said that was “impossible” because Mr Maclachlan was not employed by him until four months later.

Mr Quaedvlieg then changed his evidence to allege he had a conversation with Mr Maclachlan “between October 2015 and the end of calendar year 2016” about a similar, third au pair visa case.

Mr Dutton has unleashed two blistering attacks against Mr Quaedvlieg in the past week, using parliamentary privilege to accuse him of grooming a woman 30 years younger and blaming his “entirely false and indeed fabricated” allegations on his “bitterness” over losing his job in March for misbehaviour.

Among the allegations levelled at Mr Quaedvlieg was that he altered internal recruitment policies to favour his girlfriend Sarah Rogers and helped her land a job with the ABF just months after they began a relationship.

Ms Rogers, who has resigned from the ABF, is subject to charges following the Australian Commission of Law Enforcement Integrity’s investigation into Mr Quaedvlieg’s alleged misconduct and is listed to appear before the Sydney Local Court next Tuesday.