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Albanese's great betrayal: The alarming data that shows there is no end in sight to the housing shortage crisis

Albanese's great betrayal: The alarming data that shows there is no end in sight to the housing shortage crisis

Sky News AU2 days ago
The numbers scream betrayal.
Australia will fall 262,000 homes short of the government's own housing target by 2029.
Other reports indicate the shortfall could total 400,000 homes in the capital cities.
Some might label this as speculation.
They're mistaken.
At this point, it's a mathematical certainty.
Anthony Albanese's government knew this was coming.
They set the target: 1.2 million new homes by 2029.
Bold promises, empty delivery.
The rental market tells the real story.
National vacancy rates sit at 1.2 per cent as of May 2025.
That's crisis territory.
Anything below three per cent spells disaster for renters.
We're not even close.
These rates remain 1.5 percentage points below pre-COVID averages.
Young Australians know the truth.
They're living it.
Share houses at thirty. Multigenerational mortgage stress. Dreams deferred indefinitely.
Many can't afford to leave home, not out of choice but necessity.
Full-time work doesn't guarantee independence anymore.
They're working harder, saving longer, and getting less.
The ladder to homeownership might not have been torched, but the bottom rung has been quietly sawed off.
The median house price continues its relentless climb.
Wages don't.
Simple arithmetic delivers crushing verdicts.
A generation locked out of home ownership.
Forever.
Labor's response?
Build apartments.
Stack humans vertically.
Problem solved, apparently.
Wrong.
This is not urban planning.
Not the smart kind, anyway.
It's bureaucratic crowd control dressed up as policy.
Apartments jammed into dense lots, minimal green space, no long-term vision.
The goal isn't to help people thrive; it's to make the housing crisis disappear on paper, to tick a box and call it progress.
But Australians don't dream of concrete towers.
They dream of Saturday morning lawn mowing.
Children's laughter in backyards. Space to breathe. Privacy to exist.
The apartment obsession ignores something elemental—how people actually live.
Families need space to grow, not just square footage.
Kids need backyards, not balconies.
Parents need storage, quiet, parking, not communal bins and walls that carry every footstep, argument, and appliance hum.
Three-bedroom apartments won't solve this.
They're band-aids on arterial wounds—luxury-priced, politically convenient, and conceptually bankrupt.
Australians want what their parents had.
Modest homes on reasonable blocks.
A patch of lawn.
A shed out back.
A place to park without circling the block.
But today's policymakers have something else in mind, the kind of housing they'd never dream of inhabiting themselves.
The kind they wouldn't raise their own children in.
Tower blocks for the masses, leafy suburbs for themselves.
And the consequences are already here.
When people can't afford to live near where they work, society fragments.
When young people can't afford to start families, birth rates collapse.
When families are priced out of the market, the dream of upward mobility dies.
A nation without children, without aspiration, is a nation in retreat.
But solutions do exist.
Australia is short on vision, but it's not short on land.
Regional areas offer what cities no longer can: space, affordability, and the potential to build real homes, not cramped cubicles.
Yet the regions remain neglected—underfunded, underconnected, underutilized.
Jobs are sparse, services are threadbare, and infrastructure barely exists beyond the town sign.
The answer is there, but it demands investment—leadership, not lip service.
Smart countries build new cities.
They don't cram everyone into a few mega-centres and then act surprised when crises unfold.
They spread their populations strategically.
They invest in infrastructure before the nightmare begins.
They lay down roads, rail, and internet—not just in capital cities but in the forgotten regions too.
They create opportunity across the map.
They think 20 years ahead.
Australia does none of this.
For far too long, the current government has done nothing as cities swelled, costs surged and families were priced out.
Sydney and Melbourne are bursting at the seams.
Brisbane and Perth aren't far behind.
And still, no new cities.
No bold planning.
Just higher density, higher prices, and higher stress.
The government could act.
It could release land, not drip-feed it to inflate prices, but actually make it available.
It could fast-track approvals, not tie them up in years of bureaucratic purgatory.
It could cut the red tape strangling builders.
But it won't.
Because this government is hooked on stagnation.
It mistakes inertia for prudence.
It governs like a property manager, not a nation builder.
It wants tax receipts, not transformation.
The Australian dream isn't dead, but it is being euthanised.
Slowly.
Bureaucratically.
Smothered by incompetence and indifference.
And as always, it's the young who pay the price.
The renters.
The first-home buyers.
The would-be parents.
Paying off someone else's investment portfolio.
Watching the dream of a backyard vanish while politicians blame local councils and 'market forces'.
There's nothing natural about this crisis.
It's manufactured.
Maintained.
Managed by people too spineless to challenge the status quo and too visionless to build something better.
Albanese's government had a chance.
A mandate.
The numbers.
They chose failure instead.
Future historians will judge this era harshly.
They'll ask how a nation with so much space became a place where families couldn't afford to start, where a home became a luxury, where the middle class—the engine of prosperity—was gutted in real time.
Young Australians deserve better.
Something must change, or watch an entire generation simply give up.
John Mac Ghlionn is a researcher and essayist who writes on psychology and social relations. He has a keen interest in social dysfunction and media manipulation.
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‘I'll never forget that moment': Samantha Ratnam on politics, Palestine and the path ahead
‘I'll never forget that moment': Samantha Ratnam on politics, Palestine and the path ahead

The Age

timean hour ago

  • The Age

‘I'll never forget that moment': Samantha Ratnam on politics, Palestine and the path ahead

For now, Ratnam has returned to social work and is spending more time with her 4½-year-old daughter, Malala. But her eyes are still fixed on the future, and on Wills. 'These decisions are in the hands of our membership and the party,' she says on whether she would run in Wills again. 'We've got a state election coming up next year, so I'll be supporting our local campaign teams in that work. And then, we'll start thinking about the next federal election as well. I've wanted to serve the party and the movement in whatever way I can, and I'm very happy to put my hand up in future as well.' That quiet resolve has defined Ratnam's political life. A trained social worker and the first woman to lead the Victorian Greens in state parliament, she stepped down from her leadership role to contest the federal seat of Wills, a traditional Labor stronghold, believing the moment demanded it. 'I've never thought of politics as a career,' she says. 'When I came into the Greens about 15 years ago, I was very worried about climate change. I thought, 'What can I do?' I felt at a loss. So I thought I'd join with others who seemed to know what to do and see how I can help. 'And I really thought that if people ask me to hand out flyers for the rest of my life, then that would be what I'd do, and I'd be very happy doing it.' Throughout our lunch it's clear Ratnam is well known here. At one point, a local named Shen stops to scold us for not ordering the lentil soup, which he swears is the best item on the café's menu. He concedes, however, that our choices – the feta and mozzarella gözleme for me, and Joy's Breakfast, a hearty plate of poached eggs on toast with avocado, mushrooms, salad and a potato börek hash brown for Ratnam – are worthy alternatives. Shen then points to the red watermelon pin, a symbol of Palestinian solidarity, proudly displayed on Ratnam's green coat, to tell her he loves it. 'Thank you,' she says. 'Absolutely horrific what's happening.' The war in Gaza, Ratnam says, played a defining role in the Wills campaign; even in the weeks after the election, locals in Wills felt compelled to tell her how they were feeling, and recalling these interactions brings her close to tears. 'I had countless numbers of conversations with people who said, 'I'm voting Greens for the first time for Gaza,' because I have seen the Greens willing to put themselves on the line,' she says. The electorate of Wills, which spans a progressive patch of Melbourne's inner north, also includes a significant Arab-Australian and Muslim population. In suburbs such as Fawkner, Ratnam says, the message from voters was clear. When I ask about the defining moment of her weeks-long campaign, Ratnam's answer comes almost immediately. 'On election night, when the numbers started to roll in, it was looking like we were in it,' she says. 'And we were in it for much of the night. It wasn't until the day or so after that, when the postal votes started to come in, that the margins started to really increase.' Ratnam goes on to speak about the voting patterns in the northern parts of the electorate, and apologises when her voice begins to crack. 'But I will remember this one moment when I learnt about the booth results in Fawkner – they were reporting that we'd achieved about a 40 per cent primary in Fawkner at Fawkner College. 'We worked very hard with that community, and it means so much because of what's happening, especially in Gaza. 'It's a community that has traditionally been underserved and overlooked by people in power, and we spent a lot of time up in the north wanting to listen deeply and making sure their voices were heard. So to see that result come through and to see how that community had rallied together, I'll never forget that moment. 'I'm sad that we couldn't win it for what this meant to a number of communities, especially those who carry what is happening to the Palestinians right now. But the work continues.' Ratnam says any suggestion that her campaign in Wills was aggressive is completely 'unfair and unfounded'. When she first ran against Khalil in 2016, Ratnam says she reached out to him to establish an open line of communication, asking that he contact her directly if any issues arose during the campaign. She extended the same offer again in 2025, before the campaign ramped up. Loading 'He did not contact me once during this entire campaign about behaviour that was troubling that was from one of our volunteers or campaigners,' she says. 'I did, however, see, especially at pre-poll, people in the community and voters challenging Khalil on his government's work or inaction, especially on Gaza … While that might be a hard thing to hear, it's the truth for the community, and it might make the Labor Party and the local MPs uncomfortable, but that's a result of their inaction.' Though this campaign was intense, Ratnam says it is part of a bigger shift she has witnessed since first entering politics. 'People feel it more directly now. It's whether you can afford food, pay rent, get healthcare. And when the material conditions bear down, people look to politics for answers,' she says. Ratnam knows firsthand how deeply personal experiences can shape political convictions. She was born in Sri Lanka, and her family fled the country's civil war, first finding refuge in Canada, before eventually settling in Australia in 1989. From a young age, Ratnam was immersed in political discussions. In Sri Lanka, she recalls adults around her constantly talking about politics with both passion and urgency. 'They knew how important it was because they knew they were either electing people who would help broker peace or people who were helping fan the flames of division, and therefore war in our country,' she says. 'So, literally, the difference between peace and war was how we were talking about politics.' Like many migrant families, Ratnam has faced constant upheaval before finding stability in Australia. 'Three continents, five schools in 2½ years. But when I moved into this community over 15 years ago, I knew I wanted to stay forever,' she says. 'You feel a sense of belonging here.' That strong bond with her local community has made Ratnam a familiar face on the streets of Wills, sometimes even when she's not there. Her identical twin sister, who lives across Melbourne, joined her on the campaign trail and was often mistaken for her. 'There are some good election day stories,' she says with a laugh. 'People would walk up to her like, 'Hi Samantha!' She'd say, 'No, I'm not …' but they didn't believe her.' As we talk, retirees sip coffee nearby, while pigeons peck at crumbs underfoot. Ratnam's lunch sits nearly untouched as she continues to speak. She's gesticulative and wide-eyed, and speaks with unguarded warmth, especially as she reflects on the political awakening of her younger self. 'In the playground, we didn't face a lot of discrimination at first,' she says. 'I put that down to the political climate – Bob Hawke, Paul Keating – leaders talking positively about multiculturalism. We'd watch SBS every night, and I remember Paul Keating talking about Australia's place in Asia. Suddenly, we felt like we were part of the national conversation.' But that early sense of inclusion didn't last. As Australia's political rhetoric shifted, Ratnam felt the change keenly. 'That really stayed with me – how leadership shapes what's acceptable. It planted the seed for why I got interested in politics. Words matter. Leaders matter.' It's why she speaks with such fondness – and sadness – about Adam Bandt, the Greens' former federal leader, who lost his seat of Melbourne on the same day she lost Wills. 'It's devastating to lose Adam from parliament and from the leadership of our movement at this moment,' she says. 'He's been an incredible representative and mentor. But the Greens have had setbacks before. We regroup. We come back stronger. That I'm sure of.' When it comes to assessing the Greens' losses in their inner-city stronghold, or more broadly their poor federal election performance, Ratnam says the Greens must learn how to better combat 'hostile campaigning'. 'We've seen some of those third-party groups come together with the pure intention of damaging the Greens,' she said. 'We threaten the status quo … we're saying that we can't do business as usual if we want to have a planet where there's a chance of surviving through climate change. If we want people to have good lives where they can access the things they need, things are going to have to be a little bit different. 'We've got to talk to the community about what they might experience in campaigns and help mitigate against some of that really negative campaigning – and you do that by building community and building trust and going directly and talking to people.' But despite the setback, Ratnam remains optimistic about the future of Wills. It's unclear whether she sees herself as the driving force for change in the seat, but with or without her face on the corflute, she's sure that change is coming. 'I think the Labor Party would know they're in deep trouble in this community,' she says. 'It's never been closer to turning Green, and we're going to keep working until it does turn Green.'

‘I'll never forget that moment': Samantha Ratnam on politics, Palestine and the path ahead
‘I'll never forget that moment': Samantha Ratnam on politics, Palestine and the path ahead

Sydney Morning Herald

timean hour ago

  • Sydney Morning Herald

‘I'll never forget that moment': Samantha Ratnam on politics, Palestine and the path ahead

For now, Ratnam has returned to social work and is spending more time with her 4½-year-old daughter, Malala. But her eyes are still fixed on the future, and on Wills. 'These decisions are in the hands of our membership and the party,' she says on whether she would run in Wills again. 'We've got a state election coming up next year, so I'll be supporting our local campaign teams in that work. And then, we'll start thinking about the next federal election as well. I've wanted to serve the party and the movement in whatever way I can, and I'm very happy to put my hand up in future as well.' That quiet resolve has defined Ratnam's political life. A trained social worker and the first woman to lead the Victorian Greens in state parliament, she stepped down from her leadership role to contest the federal seat of Wills, a traditional Labor stronghold, believing the moment demanded it. 'I've never thought of politics as a career,' she says. 'When I came into the Greens about 15 years ago, I was very worried about climate change. I thought, 'What can I do?' I felt at a loss. So I thought I'd join with others who seemed to know what to do and see how I can help. 'And I really thought that if people ask me to hand out flyers for the rest of my life, then that would be what I'd do, and I'd be very happy doing it.' Throughout our lunch it's clear Ratnam is well known here. At one point, a local named Shen stops to scold us for not ordering the lentil soup, which he swears is the best item on the café's menu. He concedes, however, that our choices – the feta and mozzarella gözleme for me, and Joy's Breakfast, a hearty plate of poached eggs on toast with avocado, mushrooms, salad and a potato börek hash brown for Ratnam – are worthy alternatives. Shen then points to the red watermelon pin, a symbol of Palestinian solidarity, proudly displayed on Ratnam's green coat, to tell her he loves it. 'Thank you,' she says. 'Absolutely horrific what's happening.' The war in Gaza, Ratnam says, played a defining role in the Wills campaign; even in the weeks after the election, locals in Wills felt compelled to tell her how they were feeling, and recalling these interactions brings her close to tears. 'I had countless numbers of conversations with people who said, 'I'm voting Greens for the first time for Gaza,' because I have seen the Greens willing to put themselves on the line,' she says. The electorate of Wills, which spans a progressive patch of Melbourne's inner north, also includes a significant Arab-Australian and Muslim population. In suburbs such as Fawkner, Ratnam says, the message from voters was clear. When I ask about the defining moment of her weeks-long campaign, Ratnam's answer comes almost immediately. 'On election night, when the numbers started to roll in, it was looking like we were in it,' she says. 'And we were in it for much of the night. It wasn't until the day or so after that, when the postal votes started to come in, that the margins started to really increase.' Ratnam goes on to speak about the voting patterns in the northern parts of the electorate, and apologises when her voice begins to crack. 'But I will remember this one moment when I learnt about the booth results in Fawkner – they were reporting that we'd achieved about a 40 per cent primary in Fawkner at Fawkner College. 'We worked very hard with that community, and it means so much because of what's happening, especially in Gaza. 'It's a community that has traditionally been underserved and overlooked by people in power, and we spent a lot of time up in the north wanting to listen deeply and making sure their voices were heard. So to see that result come through and to see how that community had rallied together, I'll never forget that moment. 'I'm sad that we couldn't win it for what this meant to a number of communities, especially those who carry what is happening to the Palestinians right now. But the work continues.' Ratnam says any suggestion that her campaign in Wills was aggressive is completely 'unfair and unfounded'. When she first ran against Khalil in 2016, Ratnam says she reached out to him to establish an open line of communication, asking that he contact her directly if any issues arose during the campaign. She extended the same offer again in 2025, before the campaign ramped up. Loading 'He did not contact me once during this entire campaign about behaviour that was troubling that was from one of our volunteers or campaigners,' she says. 'I did, however, see, especially at pre-poll, people in the community and voters challenging Khalil on his government's work or inaction, especially on Gaza … While that might be a hard thing to hear, it's the truth for the community, and it might make the Labor Party and the local MPs uncomfortable, but that's a result of their inaction.' Though this campaign was intense, Ratnam says it is part of a bigger shift she has witnessed since first entering politics. 'People feel it more directly now. It's whether you can afford food, pay rent, get healthcare. And when the material conditions bear down, people look to politics for answers,' she says. Ratnam knows firsthand how deeply personal experiences can shape political convictions. She was born in Sri Lanka, and her family fled the country's civil war, first finding refuge in Canada, before eventually settling in Australia in 1989. From a young age, Ratnam was immersed in political discussions. In Sri Lanka, she recalls adults around her constantly talking about politics with both passion and urgency. 'They knew how important it was because they knew they were either electing people who would help broker peace or people who were helping fan the flames of division, and therefore war in our country,' she says. 'So, literally, the difference between peace and war was how we were talking about politics.' Like many migrant families, Ratnam has faced constant upheaval before finding stability in Australia. 'Three continents, five schools in 2½ years. But when I moved into this community over 15 years ago, I knew I wanted to stay forever,' she says. 'You feel a sense of belonging here.' That strong bond with her local community has made Ratnam a familiar face on the streets of Wills, sometimes even when she's not there. Her identical twin sister, who lives across Melbourne, joined her on the campaign trail and was often mistaken for her. 'There are some good election day stories,' she says with a laugh. 'People would walk up to her like, 'Hi Samantha!' She'd say, 'No, I'm not …' but they didn't believe her.' As we talk, retirees sip coffee nearby, while pigeons peck at crumbs underfoot. Ratnam's lunch sits nearly untouched as she continues to speak. She's gesticulative and wide-eyed, and speaks with unguarded warmth, especially as she reflects on the political awakening of her younger self. 'In the playground, we didn't face a lot of discrimination at first,' she says. 'I put that down to the political climate – Bob Hawke, Paul Keating – leaders talking positively about multiculturalism. We'd watch SBS every night, and I remember Paul Keating talking about Australia's place in Asia. Suddenly, we felt like we were part of the national conversation.' But that early sense of inclusion didn't last. As Australia's political rhetoric shifted, Ratnam felt the change keenly. 'That really stayed with me – how leadership shapes what's acceptable. It planted the seed for why I got interested in politics. Words matter. Leaders matter.' It's why she speaks with such fondness – and sadness – about Adam Bandt, the Greens' former federal leader, who lost his seat of Melbourne on the same day she lost Wills. 'It's devastating to lose Adam from parliament and from the leadership of our movement at this moment,' she says. 'He's been an incredible representative and mentor. But the Greens have had setbacks before. We regroup. We come back stronger. That I'm sure of.' When it comes to assessing the Greens' losses in their inner-city stronghold, or more broadly their poor federal election performance, Ratnam says the Greens must learn how to better combat 'hostile campaigning'. 'We've seen some of those third-party groups come together with the pure intention of damaging the Greens,' she said. 'We threaten the status quo … we're saying that we can't do business as usual if we want to have a planet where there's a chance of surviving through climate change. If we want people to have good lives where they can access the things they need, things are going to have to be a little bit different. 'We've got to talk to the community about what they might experience in campaigns and help mitigate against some of that really negative campaigning – and you do that by building community and building trust and going directly and talking to people.' But despite the setback, Ratnam remains optimistic about the future of Wills. It's unclear whether she sees herself as the driving force for change in the seat, but with or without her face on the corflute, she's sure that change is coming. 'I think the Labor Party would know they're in deep trouble in this community,' she says. 'It's never been closer to turning Green, and we're going to keep working until it does turn Green.'

Mark Latham goes scorched earth after graphic sexual texts with estranged lover Nathalie Mathews were leaked
Mark Latham goes scorched earth after graphic sexual texts with estranged lover Nathalie Mathews were leaked

News.com.au

timean hour ago

  • News.com.au

Mark Latham goes scorched earth after graphic sexual texts with estranged lover Nathalie Mathews were leaked

Mark Latham has broken his silence on a sexting and alleged abuse scandal insisting he is only guilty of being 'human and male'. The former Labor leader has emphatically denied that he 'abuses women' insisting that any of his dealings with his ex-lover Nathalie Matthews were entirely consensual. In his first interview on the scandal, Mr Latham confirmed he was sexting in Parliament but insisted his work output was unaffected. 'The big news is I had a private life. I had a sex life and I've got to say it was fantastic,'' Mr Latham said. Mr Latham's former partner has alleged he encouraged her to have sex with other partners and defecated on her during sex. The Independent MP was not asked directly about this graphic and disturbing claim in the radio interview but confirmed he had been sexting. 'If I'm the only person in Australia who in a work environment engaged in a bit of playful sex talk with their partner, then I'll buy everyone a lottery ticket tomorrow,'' he said. Speaking to broadcaster Chris Smith on 2SM, Mr Latham said it was telling that the NSW police had not to date taken out an apprehended violence order (AVO) on her behalf. 'She tried to get an AVO with the police... I think that tells you a lot about the substance of the matter,'' he said. 'There is a court case pending because she's lodged a private AVO application. But I can say in relation to that, just about all the things she's complaining about, she initiated in consensual arrangements. 'As for messages in Parliament, Chris, you know you said on your show in terms of holding the Minns government to account, my output as an MP matches up against anyone in the upper house. 'And I mean to say if you're sitting there listening to Penny Sharpe droning on and then a woman who looks like Natalie Matthews sends you a message, which one would you pay attention to? Chris? 'Yes, I am guilty of that on a regular occasion, guilty too, of being human. In that regard. and male.' Leaked texts Overnight, leaked texts laid bare the breakdown in Mr Latham's relationship with his ex-lover, including the couple's habit of graphic exchanges about sex acts while parliament was sitting and the use of tracking devices to find a 'f**k parlour'. Ms Matthews has told that she did not leak her text exchanges with Mr Latham but confirmed she had provided her phone to NSW police. The texts, first published by The Daily Telegraph, are sexually charged and graphic. In one text exchange on February 20 at 11:06 am, the former Labor leader writes, 'Master's c**k needs relief too. Very hard thinking about you.' The 64-year-old follows up with a series of emojis including a purple eggplant and a tongue. 'Haven't c*m in days,'' he writes. 'Lots of c**k tension.' The messages continue throughout the day with Mr Latham referencing parliamentary work around 8pm. 'Made it back for the first vote after dinner,'' he writes. 'I needed that. You're amazing.' In the same exchange Ms Matthews, 37, writes, 'You are quite amazing. My Dopamine, serotonin and oxytocin.' Mark Latham denies 'false' allegations Mr Latham earlier labelled her allegations of coercive control as 'comically false and ridiculous' in a post on X. Ms Matthews has sought an AVO from police but the matter is yet to be heard. Mr Latham denies the allegations and has not been charged with any criminal offence. does not suggest the allegations are true, only that Ms Matthews has made then in an AVO application that has not yet been heard by the NSW Court. 'As the old saying goes, Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned,' Mr Latham said. 'The story says that Ms Matthews went to the police and they did not do anything. They certainly haven't contacted me. In the current environment, that says a lot.' In October, the pair discussed tracking devices. 'Update your tracker,'' Mr Latham writes. 'Where's tracker? Please follow instructions. Send tracker so I can find this f*ck parlour.' Texts expose relationship breakdown The breakdown between the pair is also detailed in more recent messages after the relationship turned sour. 'The heinous monster I saw and that physically attacked me that Tuesday night is responsible for any heart issues you might have,'' Mr Latham writes on June 6. 'Yes, I imploded on the person I love the most due to various external factors, and I never recall a physical attack,'' Ms Matthews responds. 'I reported the attack on me and the other threats you made that night to parliamentary security, as I am obliged to do,'' Mr Latham says. 'I have also had to see a doctor for the shakes I've had since that nightmarish night, and he advised the same thing. 'You obviously don't understand what you did, drunk, covered in mud, a monster screaming.' Latham defends Parliament sexting Mr Latham defended his taxpayer-funded sexting sessions conducted on the floor of NSW Parliament. After the release of hundreds of leaked text messages including sexual messages sent at the same time as he was sitting in Parliament, Mr Latham insisted it never impacted his work. 'I don't think responding to a consensual partner on a private, intimate matter in any way has reduced my workload, which I would match up against any other member in the place,' he said. Mr Latham told The Daily Telegraph that his ex-lover would send sexts when Parliament was sitting that required 'a response.' Mr Latham declined to describe the messages the pair exchanged out of 'an abundance of caution about revenge porn laws.' Mr Latham took to X late on Tuesday night, claiming the text messages that were leaked to the media were 'not accurate'. 'The Daily Telegraph this evening has reproduced a log of messages between me and Nathalie Matthews. They are not accurate. I dont know who, but someone has made changes in very important ways,' he wrote. Proposal revelations Lovestruck Mr Latham proposed marriage to his ex-lover Ms Matthews before she accused him of degrading sexual acts and alleged a pattern of abusive behaviour. Despite Mr Latham describing the relationship as 'a situationship', friends of the former couple have revealed the love affair was serious. In fact, they insist that the former Labor leader proposed to the businesswoman and Liberal Party supporter on May 23, 2024 at the acclaimed Italian restaurant Otto in Sydney. But Ms Matthews has now alleged that Mr Latham asked her to call him 'master' and engaged in degrading sexual acts, allegations detailed in a shocking apprehended violence application. She has alleged that he defecated on her before sex, took intimate images and threw a plate at her – allegations Mr Latham strongly denies. does not suggest the claims are true, only that they have been made in an application to the NSW Local Court in pursuit of an AVO. Mr Latham separated from his second wife Janine Lacy, a local magistrate, and the mother of his children, in September, 2022 after over twenty years of marriage. He divorced his first wife Gabrielle Gwyther in 1999. Latham denies 'degrading' sex acts' Mr Latham, 64, issued an emphatic denial about the claims, telling The Australian newspaper – that first broke the story – that the allegations were untrue. 'The claims you've listed there are absolute rubbish,' Mr Latham said. 'Comical in fact. 'Nothing has been served on me nor has anyone contacted me. 'I haven't had anything to do with her (Ms Matthews) since 27 May, so nearly seven weeks ago. I ended the 'situationship' that night for very good reason.' In late 2023, it was a different story with Mr Latham gushing over his new girlfriend on social media. 'So much looking forward to The Everest this Saturday at Royal Randwick,' Mr Latham's post read. 'A beautiful trophy designed by the great Nic Cerrone, made even more spectacular by being photographed with @nathaliemaymatthews.' In another post, the loved-up couple cuddled at the Rosehill Gardens Racecourse, in Sydney's west. 'Great day of racing at Rosehill with the Town Crier and the very beautiful Nathalie Matthews,' the caption on the post read, followed by an emoji with heart eyes. NSW Police contact NSW police sources say officers who initially interviewed Ms Matthews did not believe there was sufficient evidence to proceed with charges or an apprehended violence order on the information they were given. They remain open to taking a further, more comprehensive statement. They again spoke to her as recently as Monday and will continue to seek a comprehensive statement. 'Degrading' sexual acts alleged Ms Matthews, 37, is seeking an order preventing Mr Latham from going within 100m of her, alleging an 'ongoing, reasonable fear of harassment, intimidation, and potential harm'. 'Throughout our relationship, the defendant engaged in a sustained pattern of emotional, physical, sexual, psychological, and financial abuse, including defecating on me before sex and refusing to let me wash,'' the application states. 'Forcing degrading sexual acts, pressuring me to engage in sexual acts with others, demanding I call him 'master,' telling me I was his property, and repeatedly telling me that my only value to him was for sex to demean and control me.' In the application, she stated that on May 27, 2025, Mr Latham arrived at her home at some time in the evening after sending her 'abusive and coercive text messages, pressuring and insulting me for not being home with him'. After she returned home later that evening, she alleged he was verbally aggressive and intimidating before leaving. 'Monster' texts revealed Shortly after, she alleged he sent further threatening and coercive messages, falsely accusing her of aggression, calling her a 'monster,' and stating he had gone to his GP to create a record claiming distress and that he had approached Parliamentary Security – given he is currently a member of the New South Wales Legislative Council. In June, she stated she was in the Middle East for several weeks. Ms Matthews owns an e-commerce global logistics firm based in Dubai, Perth and Sydney. But upon her return, the application stated she had been in 'a constant state of fear and hypervigilance due to the defendant's pattern of harassment and intimidation following previous separations'. She also alleged instances of physical violence in the application including 'pushing me against walls, forcing me out the door, throwing a plate at me during an argument, and driving at me with his vehicle, hitting me with the side mirror and causing a bruise'. The application also cites allegations of psychological abuse, including 'constant put-downs comparing me unfavourably to other women, acting as if he would harm himself to manipulate me, monitoring my devices without consent, and systematically undermining my confidence to control and isolate me'. There are also claims of financial abuse, including borrowing $20,000 on four occasions without prompt repayment, forcing her to pay for international holidays under duress, coercing her into expensive purchases, and pressuring her regarding her father's will. 'Intimate videos' 'The defendant has held intimate photos and videos of me, and I have been afraid he would expose them to shame and control me if I attempted to leave or resist his demands,'' the application stated. 'The defendant has repeatedly manipulated and intimidated me into resuming the relationship following separations, creating a cycle of fear and control. Previous breakups in May 2024, June 2024, September 2024, January 2025, and June 2025 were followed by similar intimidation and re-engagement. '(Mr Latham engaged in) physical violence, including pushing me against walls, forcing me out the door, throwing a plate at me during an argument, and driving at me with his vehicle, hitting me with the side mirror and causing a bruise,' the court document claims. The matter will be mentioned at Downing Centre Local Court on July 30.

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