Latest news with #JohnRuddick
Daily Mail
17-07-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
How Mark Latham could get EXPELLED from Parliament - and it has NOTHING to do with his grubby sex scandal
Libertarian MP John Ruddick has pledged to launch a GoFundMe campaign to raise funds for Mark Latham's $1million legal bill, after he was found to have defamed Sydney MP Alex Greenwich in a graphic and homophobic tweet. 'If Mark Latham is forced into bankruptcy, I'll start a GoFundMe,' Ruddick told Chris Smith on 2SM radio on Thursday morning. 'I'm going to ask 10,000 people to pay $100, that's a million dollars. And if there's anything left over, we'll throw a big Mark Latham party.' Latham, now an Independent MLC, was ordered to pay $140,000 in damages and an estimated $600,000 in legal costs following a Federal Court ruling in 2024. Any sitting MP who is declared bankrupt is required to vacate their seat under the NSW Constitution. Ruddick praised Latham as 'a giant of the NSW Legislative Council' in the wake of an unfolding scandal over lewd text messages he sent to his former partner Nathalie Matthews, some allegedly sent from the Parliament floor. 'Half the country wanted him to be Prime Minister not that long ago,' he said. 'In state Parliament, there's a lot of technical stuff, Mark is across it all. He's making a serious, valuable contribution.' Ruddick also praised Latham's sharp debating style, deep understanding of legislation, and ability to command attention in the chamber. 'When Mark gets up, everyone stops what they're doing. They listen,' he said. In a separate interview with Chris Smith on 2SM on Wednesday, Latham confirmed he had sent the messages, but denied it had impacted his work. 'The big news is I had a private life,' he said. 'I had a sex life, and I've got to say it was fantastic.' '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.' Latham said 'basically none' of Matthews' claims were true and stressed that NSW Police had not granted her request for an AVO. Matthews has lodged a private AVO application, which remains before the courts. Sex worker Carly Electric (pictured) has claimed Latham and Ms Matthews contacted her 'out of nowhere' earlier this year for what she suspected was for a threesome 'Just about all the things she is complaining about, she initiated in consensual arrangements,' Latham alleged, noting their last contact was on May 27. Ms Matthews claims the one-time federal opposition leader inflicted 'a sustained pattern' of psychological, financial and emotional abuse against her for three years. The former federal Labor leader has categorically denied he 'abuses women' and insisted all his dealings with Ms Matthews were entirely consensual. It is not suggested the claims of abusive behaviour are substantiated, only that allegations have been made. Meanwhile, a sex worker has come forward with bombshell claims that Latham and his then-girlfriend contacted her for a threesome that never eventuated. Carly Electric claimed the pair contacted her 'out of nowhere' earlier this year for what she suspected was for a threesome. 'She (Ms Matthews) just came out of nowhere and it's like they were love bombing me … each of them separately landed in my DMs,' she told the Daily Telegraph. Latham described Ms Electric as a 'good rooter'. 'Multi-skilled. Comedian. Race lover. Keen rooter. Exactly our sort of person!' he said. He also joked if she might want to be involved in a 'freak off', a another term used by infamous rapper Sean Diddy Coombs for a threesome.
Daily Mail
03-07-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE 'Nanny state' uproar as armed cops STORM packed Sydney cocktail bar and shut it down because owner was a few days late with his licensing paperwork: 'Prohibition'
Heavily armed tactical and riot squad police have stormed a popular cocktail bar just three days after the owners missed a deadline on its liquor licence paperwork. Officers pulled the plug on festivities at Song of Eve, a popular nightclub on Bridge Street in Sydney 's CBD, about 12.30am on Sunday, June 29. About 380 revellers were booted from the upmarket venue, which has a maximum capacity of 100 people including staff, while the party was in full swing. Song of Eve's alcohol licence was suspended on June 26 after the club failed to pay a renewal fee, with heavily-armed officers wasting no time busting their way in. Tactical police officers returned to the club on Wednesday - armed with a battering ram - to execute a full-scale search warrant and seize the remaining alcohol at the bar. Officers were seen ferrying $700 bottles of Don Julio tequila and a $750 bottle of Dom Pérignon from the venue and into a waiting police van. The club's owner, 32-year-old owner, financier Min Ho 'Conrad' Song, has been charged with seven offences with maximum penalties of up to 12 months in jail and $60,000 fines. But the raids have sparked a political firestorm, Daily Mail Australia can reveal. Libertarian member of the NSW Legislative Council John Ruddick described the venue's licensing infringement as a 'victimless crime'. 'Nanny state regulations like this make alcohol a taboo and contributes to our dysfunctional relationship with alcohol. Song of Eve is obviously a popular venue. I hope it can return to business as normal immediately.' Paul Nicolau, the executive director of Business Sydney, said the nightspot should be praised for bringing in crowds and warned the police against waging 'prohibition-style' raids. 'As an advocate for CBD businesses, we can't condone one allegedly operating without a current liquor licence,' Mr Nicolau told Daily Mail Australia. 'However, any "raids" should be by government agencies responsible for boosting the CBD economy to discover the secret of Song of Eve's success.' He added the 'last thing we need in our vibrant city' is 'raids that are reminiscent of America's prohibition era'. The upmarket venue boasts a lengthy cocktail menu and private VIP services for $5,000 The upmarket venue offers premium table service packages on its website including a $5,000 private space replete with a dedicated waitress, a three-litre bottle of Belvedere Vodka, a top-shelf tequila and a bottle of Dom Pérignon. Mr Nicolau said authorities should look to work constructively with the venue and avoid conducting raids that may hamper Sydney's recovering nightlife. 'This nightspot is clearly doing something right if it can attract hundreds of customers to the heart of the city,' he said. 'Our night-time economy needs more of this, not less. Let's hope the relevant government agencies can work with the Song of Eve owner so that it can operate meeting all regulatory requirements.' In a statement to the Daily Telegraph, a spokesperson for Song of Eve said: 'The licence renewal was overdue by one day – an administrative oversight that would be rectified. 'We are co-operating closely with authorities to ensure ongoing compliance with its licensing conditions. 'We have also engaged with licensing specialist solicitors to review the matter as it was a one day overdue renewal.' Song of Eve's owner, Mr Song, also serves as the founder and managing director of Sydney financial services firm Maqro. He was charged with seven offences including selling liquor without a licence, operating unlicensed premises, employing unlicensed security, failing to produce a licence on request, exceeding venue capacity and failing to comply with DA conditions. He was granted bail and is due to appear at Downing Centre Local Court on July 23. If convicted, certain offences carry maximum penalties of $57,500 and 12 months' imprisonment. Mr Song and Song of Eve were contacted by Daily Mail Australia.
SBS Australia
20-06-2025
- Politics
- SBS Australia
Why these empty seats could lead to arrest warrants for a state premier's staff members
Five senior government staffers could face arrest after failing to appear at an inquiry into an explosive-laden caravan found on Sydney's outskirts earlier this year. In a dramatic escalation of an otherwise routine inquiry, the process to arrest the high-ranking staff in the offices of NSW Premier Chris Minns and Police Minister Yasmin Catley was set in motion on Friday after the quintet declined to appear. Committee chair and independent MP Rod Roberts conducted a roll call for the premier's chief of staff James Cullen and four other staffers before approaching upper house president Ben Franklin to seek arrest warrants. Roberts said the president was non-committal when asked to go to the Supreme Court for the warrants, but Franklin had a "very important and very crucial decision". "All along, Labor has tried to stonewall, delay and ridicule this important inquiry," fellow committee member John Ruddick said on social media. Arrest warrants can be issued to force a witness to attend an inquiry while witnesses who refuse to answer questions can face jail time. NSW Opposition leader Mark Speakman said if Minns had directed staff not to appear at the inquiry into controversial protest and hate speech legislation, "that would appear to be a breach of the ministerial code". The protest and speech laws were rushed through the NSW parliament in February after explosives, antisemitic messaging and a list of addresses of Jewish people and institutions were found inside the caravan at Dural in Sydney's north-west on 19 January. The discovery prompted fears of a terrorist attack or mass-casualty event, as the premier and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese dubbed it. In a letter to the committee announcing their intention not to attend, the staffers said appearing before the inquiry "would be at odds with the principles of ministerial accountability". Roberts pressed against that motion on Friday as he addressed empty chairs. "The committee is not seeking to sanction ministerial staff for their actions, only to shed light on the events in the lead up to the passage of the hate speech and protest laws through parliament," Roberts said. Minns attacked the upper house on Thursday for trying to get government staff to appear at inquiries "on a routine basis" as if they were "criminals and under investigation". "And if not, they're under threat of arrest," he said. As members of the lower house, Minns and Catley cannot be compelled to appear at the upper house inquiry to give evidence. But staffers can be forced to appear. Another staffer named in the motion, Minns' deputy chief of staff Edward Ovadia, said in the letter he should be excused from attending the committee because he was on leave at the time and did not attend meetings. The premier and police minister say they have commented extensively on the matter, including at parliamentary hearings and press conferences and during question time.
