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11-11-2020
Bureau Report + BBC
CANBERRA/ MELBOURNE: Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison has been criticized for interrupting a senior minister who was responding to a question about what it’s like to be a woman in parliament.
Anne Ruston, minister for families and social services, was asked if the culture for women in parliament had improved but she was interrupted a few words into her response.
The incident comes amid reports of sexual misconduct in parliament.
An investigation by Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) News’ Four Corners looked at allegations of inappropriate behavior within the ruling Liberal Party.
Morrison attempted to address the investigation in a press conference on Tuesday. However his interruption of Ms Ruston garnered more attention on social media.
Ms Ruston was asked whether things had changed in parliament since the introduction of the so-called “bonk ban”, a ban introduced by then-Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull in 2018 that prohibited sexual relations between staff and ministers.
Video of the incident has been viewed more than 600,000 times.
South Australia Senator Penny Wong wrote: “Scott, just let her speak.” Others accused the prime minister of being “tone deaf”.
After being asked again by the journalist, Ms Ruston was able to respond. She said she had felt “wholly supported” during her time in parliament.
The ABC investigation raised questions about the behavior of male members of the Liberal Party including that of Attorney-General Christian Porter.
His alleged behavior includes making unwanted advances to women while he was in federal office.
The investigation said Porter had been warned by Turnbull about public behavior with a female member of staff in a bar. Shortly after, Turnbull introduced the “bonk ban”.
Porter denies the allegations against him.
The investigation also spoke with Rachelle Miller, a Liberal staffer who said she had had an affair with Minister Alan Tudge.
She told ABC’s Four Corners program there was a “significant power imbalance” in relationships between ministers and staffers.
In a statement to the Guardian following the release of Four Corners’ investigation, Tudge said: “I regret my actions immensely and the hurt it caused my family. I also regret the hurt that Ms Miller has experienced.”
