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Firm welcomes independent review by former Dyson Heydon investigator
On behalf of ex-staffer Rachelle Miller, her lawyers welcomed the announcement by Prime Minister Scott Morrison that the investigator of Dyson Heydon’s harassment would be examining the allegations levelled against education minister Alan Tudge.
Naomi Neilson
Former inspector-general of intelligence and security, Dr Vivienne Thom – who investigated Justice Heydon, a former High Court judge – has been engaged by Mr Morrison to examine the allegations of emotional and physical abuse by Mr Tudge during the course of his consensual relationship with former media adviser Ms Miller.
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In a statement released before an address to Parliament House, Ms Miller said that while she was clear the relationship with Mr Tudge was consensual, “it’s more complicated than that” and shared that she had experienced “bullying, intimidation, harassment” from Mr Tudge while at work, which destroyed her confidence.
Earlier this week, Ms Miller told media of an incident that took place in Kalgoorlie after the minister had taken her to the hotel bar for a drink. Having woken up at 4am the next morning to a call from a media producer, Ms Miller said she felt someone “kicking the side of my hip and leg as I tried to sit up in the bed”.
“It was the minister. He was furious, telling me to ‘get the f--- out of his bed’. I quickly told the producer I would call her back. I then realised I was completely naked,” Ms Miller said, adding that after she returned to her room to organise media interviews for Mr Tudge, she realised she could not remember anything from the night before.
“I don’t remember how we ended up in his room. I don’t remember leaving the bar. I don’t remember if we had sex. I didn’t know if we used protection. I still don’t. I was too afraid to ask him if he remembered,” Ms Miller said in the statement.
In response to the allegations, Mr Morrison asked Mr Tudge to stand down while Dr Thom carried out an investigation. Mr Tudge, while not responding to the hotel allegation directly, said that Ms Miller’s claims were wrong and did not happen.
Gordon Legal, who was previously retained by Ms Miller to bring a workplace harassment suit against Mr Tudge and Attorney-General Michaelia Cash, told media that Ms Miller would co-operate fully with the investigation and that her priority is that both parties commit to implementing recommendations from Kate Jenkins review.
“We regard Mr Morrison’s announcement today of what he calls ‘an independent and fair’ review of Mr Tudge’s ministerial conduct as an admission of the fundamental flaws of the existing complaints process,” senior partner Peter Gordon said.
“That existing process allows the government to hire its own lawyers to the complaint, hide the result under legal privilege, provide a minister with access to the determination but not the complainant, and allows the minister concerned to tell everyone his own version of what was decided. The existing system is neither independent nor fair, as commissioner Jenkins has made clear.”
