Natalie Barr loses to Sussan Ley over sexual misconduct allegations from David Van

Sunrise presenter Natalie Barr has fired on deputy Liberal leader Sussan Ley over new allegations of inappropriate behavior against Senator David Van.

Former Senator Amanda Stoker accused Senator Van of inappropriately touching her buttocks twice during a 2020 House party.

The allegation was made public on the same day Senator Van was dumped from the opposition party chamber following allegations of sexual assault by Independent Senator Lidia Thorpe in Parliament.

Speaking to Ms Ley and Labor Secretary Jason Clare on Friday morning’s programme, Barr questioned why the issue was not addressed in 2020.

“Why are we only hearing this now? Was this swept under the carpet when you were in government?’ she asked Mrs. Ley.

Ms Ley replied that she would ‘not comment on the accuracy of the allegations or not’.

“You will understand that it is not appropriate to do so. But Peter Dutton heard these problems, he made inquiries and acted on them. That is a strong demonstration of his leadership.’

Her wary reply only seemed to infuriate Barr even more.

“Only now when it was forced upon him!” she shot back.

“You’re supposed to be the best of us, you’re supposed to represent us, you’re supposed to run this country.”

“And it looks like a cesspool from here.”

Amanda Stoker reported it. She didn’t hide this by the sound of it.’

Ms Ley urged opposition leader Peter Dutton to act decisively once the issue ‘became known’.

“His actions are endorsed by our party and many Australians,” Ms Ley said.

“It’s always hard for women to come forward.”

“That’s a general comment I want to make, it’s always hard to get up and talk about things that have happened and workplaces need to improve.”

“Let’s wait for parliamentary workshop support to do its job.”

Asked on Friday if he was aware of further allegations against the now-crossbench senator, Mr. Dutton replied: “Yes.”

“I’ve made another allegation to Senator Van, but I’m not going to comment further on those matters,” he told Nine’s Today program.

“I made a decision yesterday based on all the information available to me… that’s a decision I don’t regret at all.

“I believe it is in the best interest of the Liberal Party and that is what I have acted upon and I do not want Senator Van sitting in our party room. I made that clear.’

Mr Dutton said the alleged behavior was unacceptable.

“I would not tolerate the thought of assaulting any woman in the workplace,” he said.

“It’s been a problem in the press gallery, it’s been a problem in the House of Parliament and of course… I have referred the cases to that independent authority on the shop floor for investigation.”

Senator Thorpe said the past 48 hours had been “terrible” and that parliament was not a safe place for women to work.

“It’s such a toxic culture in that workplace, I’ve never experienced such a toxic work culture towards women,” she told ABC Radio.

“I had a lot of media coverage that day, and it wasn’t until a white woman stood up and said, ‘Yeah, this happened to me too,’ did the media take notice.”

Senator Thorpe said the case illustrates why women don’t speak out against inappropriate behavior.

“I was not believed, I was interrogated, I was absolutely demonized that day, by everyone,” she said.

In her statement, Ms Stoker said Senator Van “touched me inappropriately at an informal social gathering in a parliamentary office” in November 2020.

“He did that by squeezing my bottom twice,” she said.

‘By its nature and by its repetition it was not accidental.

That action was not appropriate. It was unprofessional and uninvited.”

Senator Van said he had no recollection of the incident and told News.com.au that he had a “friendly” conversation with Ms Stoker after her complaint and that he would never have touched her inappropriately.

“I discussed the matter with Senator Van at a meeting the next day. I described the action, told him it was unacceptable and would not be repeated.’

Ms Stoker said she held a meeting after the alleged incident and accepted Senator Van’s apology.

She said that while she wanted the incident to remain confidential, she said that view was “no longer tenable” following Senator Thorpe’s statement.

Earlier on Thursday, opposition leader Peter Dutton said he had told the Victorian senator earlier on Thursday that he was no longer welcome in the party room.

It followed a speech from Senator Thorpe to the upper house on Thursday, in which she detailed allegations of sexual assault by a liberal senator.

She had accused Senator Van of harassment and assault under parliamentary privilege on Wednesday.

Senator Van has rejected Senator Thorpe’s claims.

Although she did not name Senator Van in her speech, Senator Thorpe said she was followed and then cornered in a stairwell by a Parliament House senator before being “aggressively introduced and touched inappropriately.”

“There are different views on what constitutes assault … for me it was assault,” she told parliament.

“I was afraid to walk out the office door.

‘I opened the door a little and checked that the coast was clear before stepping out.

“It was to the extent that I had to be escorted by someone when I walked into this building.”

Senator Thorpe said she would not take legal action over the incident or go to the police with the claims.

The independent senator said the incident was not an isolated one and that there were other people in parliament who had touched her inappropriately.

Senator Van told parliament on Thursday that Senator Thorpe’s allegations were “fabricated from beginning to end.”

“Nothing she’s said about me is true,” he said.

“No such exchange has taken place between us.

“There is no interaction that could resemble what she described today.

“To make false accusations in the Senate today is disgraceful and discredits the Senate.”

But he accepted that he would no longer be in the liberal banquet hall.

Senator Thorpe made Senator Van’s initial allegations on Wednesday as he delivered a speech accusing the Labor Party of unethical conduct in its handling of Higgins’ sexual abuse allegations.

Senator Van said he accepted an offer from then-Senate President Scott Ryan in 2021 to move to an office further away from Senator Thorpe.

He had done so in response to a claim – which he rejected – that his proximity to her office made her feel ‘uncomfortable’.

In a statement, Senate President Sue Lines said she had heard the request for increased security and CCTV in the House.

“I will discuss the proposal with the Speaker of the House of Representatives, as we have a joint responsibility for the building,” she told the Senate.

Senator Lines also said Senator Thorpe’s statement on Thursday did not violate parliamentary rules.