Stoker came forward after Thorpe on Wednesday accused Van in parliament of “harassing” and “sexually assaulting” her before withdrawing the comments to comply with Senate rules.
Van on Thursday accused the former Greens senator of “concocting” her allegations and “cowering under the umbrella of parliamentary privilege to make her claim”.
This masthead does not suggest any of the allegations are true.
On Thursday,Thorpe told the Senate an unnamed man had cornered her in a stairwell,and alleged that during her time in parliament she had been “aggressively propositioned and inappropriately touched”.
Van,who left Canberra on Thursday,will face intense scrutiny if he returns for parliament next week. The opposition leader has referred the allegations to the Parliamentary Workplace Support Service for investigation.
Dutton’s call for Van to resign from parliament was backed by several prominent MPs,including his deputy,Sussan Ley – also the party spokesperson for women – whose office said she “supports the strong words and actions of the leader in dealing with this very sensitive and serious matter”.
The opposition’s leader in the Senate,Simon Birmingham,said he supported Dutton,as did senators Anne Ruston and Marise Payne.
Birmingham said:“It would be entirely appropriate for him to reflect upon his position in the Senate.”
Liberal frontbench Senator Michaelia Cash said the Liberal leader had handled the matter “in an entirely appropriate way”. When asked whether the party should accept Van’s vote in the Senate,Cash replied,“we hope it won’t come to that,as he should resign”.
Birmingham also told the ABC that former prime minister Scott Morrison’s office had been aware that Thorpe had made allegations.
In the press gallery corridor,Birmingham said while the Greens raised Thorpe’s complaint regarding Van two years ago,resulting in Van’s office being moved,he was only made aware of the other two allegations against the senator on Thursday.
Asked whether he should have known about Stoker’s allegation,Birmingham said:“Not necessarily”.
“I think we must in all of these instances remember that a person with an allegation has a right to consult and engage with the people they choose to. That is part of their choice,their agency,” he said.
While Dutton has sent Van to the crossbench,the power to kick him out of the party rests with the Liberals’ Victorian division. Similarly,Van cannot be forced to quit the parliament – he must choose to resign.
The Victorian branch released a statement on Friday saying it had “taken action to suspend all organisational resources and support from Senator Van”.
“There will be an urgent meeting this weekend of the party’s Victorian administrative committee to further consider the allegations raised,” it said.
Victorian party president Greg Mirabella met federal MPs from the state earlier on Friday before a meeting of the Liberals’ Federal Council in Canberra,which was already scheduled for this weekend.
If Van were to resign from parliament,former Aston candidate Roshena Campbell and Mirabella would be among the frontrunners for a casual vacancy,according to Liberal Party sources who asked not to be named.
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On Friday morning,Van released a statement saying he was “stunned that my good reputation can be so wantonly savaged without due process or accountability”.
“I will fully co-operate with whatever process Mr Dutton proposes to determine these matters as quickly and fairly as possible,” he said.
“While I understand the public interest is high,I will not be making any more public statements on the allegations until a proper examination of these claims is concluded.”
Hosting Sky News in place of Peta Credlin on Friday night,Stoker said she never wanted to go public with her claim,but Van’s denial of inappropriate behaviour towards her affirmed that “speaking up was the right thing to do”.
“After all,the standard we walk past is the standard we accept,” she said.
“I immediately registered the issue with a senior colleague to ensure a record of the event,and to ensure that any conduct that wasn’t in my line of sight,could be detected and dealt with should patterns emerge.
“Though I would have preferred for the matter to remain private and in the past,I felt it important to ensure that if it was going to be reported,it was done so accurately.”
If you or anyone you know needs support,contact the National Sexual Assault,Domestic and Family Violence Counselling Service on1800RESPECT (1800 737 732),Lifeline 131 114,orBeyond Blue 1300 224 636.
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