Mark Latham denies breaching parliamentary rules, abuse allegations in lengthy statement
The former federal Labor leader has faced mounting political pressure over media reports alleging emotional and physical abuse of his ex-partner Nathalie Matthews, and that he allegedly participated in a consensual sex video in his office.
Ms Matthews is pursuing a civil court apprehended violence order against Mr Latham, with media reports she is accusing him of a "sustained pattern" of abuse and pressuring her into "degrading" sex acts.
Mr Latham has emphatically rejected those claims as "nonsense".
In a lengthy address to the media in south-west Sydney on Saturday, Mr Latham refused to confirm or deny whether he had sex in his office.
But Mr Latham insisted he had no knowledge of any video, following reports by the Sydney Morning Herald.
"I have checked my devices and I can't find any material [Ms Matthews] has filmed involving me, and that includes New South Wales Parliament House," Mr Latham said.
But Mr Latham admitted he had made a "mistake" following media reports he allegedly took photos of female colleagues speaking in parliament and made disparaging comments about them in private messages.
"I have apologised to both Susan Carter and Abigail Boyd and they've accepted my apology for which I thank them both sincerely," he said.
NSW Premier Chris Minns has this week suggested Mr Latham be investigated by the privileges committee following the allegations about his behaviour in parliament.
But Mr Latham has again insisted he broke no standing orders in parliament and he has not been notified of any complaint about his conduct.
He also directed his attacks at the media, accusing it of "reckless and irresponsible journalism".
Ms Matthews has been contacted for a response.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
News.com.au
6 minutes ago
- News.com.au
French man arrested after disturbing airport find
Australian Border Force (ABF) officers at Sydney International Airport have made a shocking discovery after sifting through the luggage of a young man as he attempted to enter the country. A 20-year-old French man was arrested by officers after they uncovered a 22kg stash of crystal methamphetamine inside his bags. After locating 22 vacuum-sealed bags of the substance, which are estimated to have a street value of more than $20m, the ABF handed over the investigation to the Australian Federal Police (AFP). The AFP charged the man with a pair of drug-trafficking-related offences, which individually carry maximum sentences of life in prison if convicted. The man has already appeared at the Downing Centre and will face court again on September 16. AFP Detective Superintendent Morgen Blunden said the AFP were 'working closely' with overseas partners to disrupt drug supply chains. 'This is not a victimless crime. These drugs individuals carry fuel violence, addiction and organised crime in our communities,' he said. 'Every kilogram seized is a blow to the networks that profit from harm and a reminder that Australia is not an easy target.' AFP Superindendent Elke West said ABF officers were 'the first line of defence' when it cames to tackling drug smuggling. 'Working alongside our partner agencies, we are at the ready 24/7 to disrupt this criminal behaviour at the border, protecting our members of the community one detection at a time,' Superintendent West said.
News.com.au
6 minutes ago
- News.com.au
Barnaby Joyce warns future generations facing China ‘threat'
Nationals maverick Barnaby Joyce says Australia's approach to defence is 'putting the future of your children and grandchildren at threat' amid fears over China's military build-up and aggression toward Taiwan. The warning comes as Talisman Sabre, Australia's biggest war-games, reaches its tail end. Some 35,000 troops from 19 of the country's allies are taking part in the military exercises — drills Taiwan is pushing to be part of in the future. Mr Joyce, a former deputy prime minister, said on Monday Australia's 'strategic ambiguity' on Taiwan must be 'backed up with incredible strength'. 'There's not multiple rules-based orders in the world — there's one,' he told Seven's Sunrise, citing French President Emmanuel Macron. 'If a country wants to be outside that by just taking the South China Sea, by what we've seen with journalists in Hong Kong just (being) taken off the street, with tennis players who disappear if they say the wrong thing. 'We've had a massive build-up of (China's) armed capacity, including their nuclear capacity, and no real explanation as to why and (Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong) brought that to our attention lately.' Mr Joyce went on to say the 'Australian people really haven't grasped exactly what's before us'. 'We need to become as strong as possible as quickly as possible,' he said. 'We really are putting the future of your children and grandchildren at threat. 'China does not believe in a democratic world order. 'They believe in an alternate order that does not include democracy and ultimately … where we lie in that, if we don't get this right, is as a vassal state. 'You will be dominated by economically, socially in your media, by a totalitarian regime.' Adding that Australia is 'not as strong as we should be at the moment', Mr Joyce said the answer was working with allies to bolster collective defence. Bringing Taiwan into the fold would mean Australia needs to 'look like you are strong enough to back yourself in'.
ABC News
an hour ago
- ABC News
Nearly 400 Indigenous children and teens held in NT police watch houses over six-month period
Almost 400 Indigenous children and teenagers have been held in the Northern Territory's notorious police watch houses over a six-month period, the ABC can reveal. Exactly how long the children were kept in the watch houses may never been known, however, with NT Police admitting they are recording erroneous time-spent-in-custody information. The ABC has obtained nearly 60 pages of confidential NT Police data under Freedom of Information (FOI) laws, tracking youths in custody from August 25, 2024, to March 5, 2025. The Country Liberal Party government was elected on a tough-on-crime platform on August 24. NT Police initially refused to release the data to the ABC, so it had to be sourced through FOI. The data shows there were nearly 870 youth "custody events" in NT police watch houses over the six months. The custody events involved 402 individual youths, some of whom were recidivist offenders. Of the 402 youths, the dataset — which NT Police confirmed was correct — shows 388 were Indigenous. A police spokesperson who confirmed the numbers said all watch houses were "managed through strict policy, procedures and instructions". "The primary consideration in relation to people in police custody is the safety and welfare of the individual," they said. The independent member for Mulka in the NT parliament, Yingiya Guyula, said children in watch houses were being "traumatised in a way that does not encourage rehabilitation". "I have visited the watch house in Palmerston and holding people for days in these conditions is just cruel," he said. The government lowered the age of criminal responsibility from 12 to 10 in October 2024. As of 2024, there were 27,400 people aged between 10 and 17 in the NT. It means around 1.5 per cent of children in that age bracket spent time in NT watch houses over the six months. The statistics cover six NT watch houses, including the Peter McAuley Centre police headquarters in Darwin, Katherine, Tennant Creek, Alice Springs and Palmerston. Some are notoriously overcrowded, with windowless cells and the lights on 24 hours a day. They are meant to be used only as a stopgap place for the youths to be processed after their arrests, before they are delivered to a newly built youth detention centre in Darwin. Last week, the NT's Aboriginal legal aid service NAAJA revealed an 11-year-old girl had been left for a night and two days in the Palmerston watch house. In March, a 15-year-old girl was held in the Palmerston watch house for three nights after the local court ceased after-hours bail reviews for young people. The treatment of children in watch houses in Queensland has also been under scrutiny, with a state police review finding youths were spending an average of 161 hours in the facilities. As part of the ABC's FOI request, NT Police released data logs showing how long each child had spent in custody. The data indicated that, while the vast majority were in custody for less than 24 hours, some had spent up to 25 days at a time inside Palmerston watch house. Others were recorded to have been kept in watch houses for six, seven or eight-day periods. When asked to confirm the accuracy of the data, the NT Police spokesperson said it was erroneous: "The Northern Territory Police Force can confirm that the data provided does not accurately reflect the actual time youths have spent in custody. "While the report you received reflects what was recorded in the system at the time, it does not account for process variations that can affect how custody end times are calculated." The spokesperson said police could not provide an accurate time frame for each of the 870 custody cases, as it would require "a manual analysis of each custody incident". "No youths have been held in police watch houses for 25 days straight," they said. In November 2023, NT Police replaced its decades-old crime data IT software with a new system named SerPro. Initially budgeted at $45 million, the cost of rolling out SerPro increased to $58 million, and it's been plagued with issues since it began operating. Nathan Finn, the president of the NT's police union, said he was not surprised the time-in-custody data was erroneous, considering the issues police faced with the system. "Since the establishment of the SerPro system, we've seen a number of data issues and how that's been calculated," he said. "We've seen this and raised these concerns over a number of periods of time since the implementation of [SerPro]. "[SerPro] probably creates a 25 per cent increase in workload in managing a prisoner … within the custody facility." Mr Finn said it would be unprecedented for youths to be held for weeks at a time in watch houses. "We have youth that are in custody sometimes for two days or three days at maximum, depending on where they're remanded to and the availability of transferring them into a correctional facility," he said. He said the data issues needed to be fixed immediately. "If the police force is receiving this data and it's incorrect, how are they guiding their own policies and procedures?" he said. "How are they managing any risks that are identified, or any concerns that they may have in the custody space?" Mr Guyula agreed that the erroneous data needed to be fixed immediately. "We don't trust the information that we are being given," he said. "The police data shows some children are being held in watch houses for long periods, even weeks. "If the data is not correct, the police need to provide the correct data.
