The government says allegations of sexual harassment by Speaker Peter Slipper should be tested in court without political interference. Mr Slipper has denied claims published in News Limited newspapers on Saturday that he sexually harassed a male staffer and misused Cabcharges. The civil claims against Mr Slipper, made in court documents obtained by the newspaper, allege he recruited 33-year-old James Ashby to pursue a sexual relationship with him. The application filed to the Federal Court reportedly says Mr Slipper allegedly made unwelcome advances toward Mr Ashby and sent him explicit text messages making his sexual intentions clear. Mr Slipper took to Twitter early on Saturday morning to deny the claims. He is currently overseas. "The allegations in News Ltd papers are denied!" he tweeted, later adding they were "a surprise to me". Later he repeatedly told media at Los Angeles airport: "All allegations are denied." He refused to say anything else, including whether he had spoken to the prime minister about the matter. Mr Ashby is being represented by Harmers Workplace Lawyers, which represented Kristy Fraser-Kirk in a settled harassment suit against former David Jones boss Mark McInnes. A spokesman for the firm said it had no present plans to make a public statement about the case filed against Mr Slipper. The Government Leader of the House, Anthony Albanese, said he knew nothing about the allegations before reading of them in the media. "It isn't appropriate to comment on the detail of legal proceedings of which obviously I would have no knowledge," he told reporters in Sydney on Saturday. "It's important that we recognise the separation between the judicial arm and the political arm of the state." Opposition leader Tony Abbott called for Mr Slipper to step aside from the Speaker's chair while the matter was heard in court. "Yes, the Speaker is entitled to the presumption of innocence, but he does have quite a lot of explaining to do," he told journalists in Hervey Bay in Queensland. "These are of a vastly more serious and substantial nature than anything that has been alleged against Mr Slipper in the past." Tasmanian independent Andrew Wilkie backed these calls, saying Mr Slipper should sit on the crossbench until the matter was resolved. "Let's not forget the government only thrust Peter Slipper into the Speaker's role in a cynical move to head off meaningful poker machine reform," Mr Wilkie said in a statement. That poker machine reform is his pet project. "If he's found guilty of these allegations it will be a disaster of the government's own making." Mr Albanese said any question of stepping aside was one for Mr Slipper to decide. "There aren't allegations against anyone in the government," he said. He believed Mr Slipper had done "a very good job" as Speaker. "That's been something that's been acknowledged across the spectrum including by his former coalition colleagues," he said. Prime Minister Julia Gillard is not expected to comment on the matter on Saturday. The newspaper reports said court documents showed the Howard government was aware of other allegations of sexual harassment against Mr Slipper as far back as 2003. But Liberal Senator Arthur Sinodinos, who was John Howard's chief of staff at the time, said on Saturday he could not recall specific allegations of that type. "I cannot recall particular circumstances that I think are referred to in the News Limited report," he told ABC TV. "But in a sense now that is ancient history and we're faced with a series of fresh allegations." The reports also raise allegations that taxpayer-funded Cabcharges were misused. The Australian Federal Police said on Saturday they were aware of these. A spokeswoman told AAP police were assessing the information they had about the allegations but it would not be appropriate to comment further at this stage. Mr Slipper became Speaker on the last day of parliament in 2011 after the Labor speaker, Harry Jenkins, resigned. The Sunshine Coast MP resigned from the Liberal National Party to take over the job. His defection effectively gave the minority Labor government two extra votes, a wider buffer than previously. ============================================================================= This will put even more strain on the ALP govt if Slipper is forced to stand down. The problem is, if these claims are proven to be false, Ashby`s penalty for the claimant should be severe. False claims of this nature are despicable enough at the best of times, but the political implications put this one in another league.
Oh dear julia comes unstuck thats what you get when you form a coalition with a coalition grub ,seems she has been out manuvred and with Wilke about to jump ship with the minority government that means get ready for a General elction before years end.the cobobulation of crap called the present ALP government is over ,with the result in queensland and NSW the ALP as a functional political opposition is Over and good riddence to bad rubbish its time for the working class to change its political perspective from reforming capitialism to one overthrowing it . Slipper is a political grub that not even the liberals could continue suffering ,oh dear Julia on the cusp of the Carbon tax on the verge. OH what an idiot the only question now is if the Greens become the 2nd party of Australian Capitialism .Goodbye ALP goodbye the Trade Union historical abortion and good riddence the working Class is about to bury them ,and the liberals will think its a movement to the right and they would be wrong the working class is moving rapidly to the left . Oh goody i feel a militant workers movement emerging . Australian Capitialism without its class traitor Party the ALP.GOOODDDYYY. BTW a liberal government will provoke a upsurge in the class struggle GOOODDYY. Australian Capitialism with its longest standing political formation in tatters GOOODDYY. Time to change government now I reckon.
The capatalism we have now not only in Australia but the whole world stems from Milton Freidmann and the chicago school of economics or (aka) chicago boys. His form of capatalism is the sort that reliquishes all power to the corporations, in other words a corporate state where they own everything and they bloody well do too. Not only do they have control over our lives through the corporations but they are also running and controlling the traitors in our governments. They have also shut down the free markets and have a monopoly on printing money. Their latest craze is to take over the soverienghty of nations through bad debts that they themselves promoted auctioned and sold. Its time for our government to take back the raines in to their hands again so we can control our own destiny, otherwise who knows where this will end. There are many forms of capatalism the one we have at the moment is the most extreme at delivering all the wealth to just a hand full of people and i put it on par with the worst from of communism they are two sides of the same coin. OHH and is our parliament full of poofters and lesos FFS.
What this form of capatalism has spawned [video=youtube;CBxBtK-2XJc]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CBxBtK-2XJc[/video]
And you truely think that the Government will see the nasty Capitialist plot and pull back to democratic rule ?Ok Whats happening Globally is the end of a historic process of re-alignment of class forces .In order for Capitialism as a economic system to survive ,and that is predicated on the continued existance of the Capitialist Class ,private property ownership and profit motive in every aspect of Human existance bar none. The old 'Democratic 'forms are being replaced by more direct violent suppressive forms of rule ,such as military Dictatorship ,Fascist Counter-revolution ect .. yes its unfettered un regulated Capitialism of the 19th Century form ,where the social rights of the Working class are to be reversed.And the old social contract ripped up ,Hockey says it last week ,SMASH the Social security safety net ,Sth Korea dosen't have one we compete so its a cost to Australian competiveness ,i don't know if you have personally witnessed capitialism korean Style ,but it is one of the most socially backward and barbaric forms in the World ,crickey 25years ago they had a brutal Military dictatorship going. No job in Sth Korea and you and your family starves literally.The societies in Asia and backward inhumane and undemocratic to the extreme ,eg if i said what i think in any seAsian nation I would be arrested and killed.As would half the liberals and others of the 'left" as you call it. no thanks Hockey i much prefer the Democratic tradition rather then the Alternative forms Capitialism offers . And why is it always down to the lowest form of anything for Capitialism now ,what happened to the progression of society ,that the next generation will be better off then the last type thinking ,its devoid from the minds of any Capitialist politican and thats the world we experience. Workers are not in competion over wages against workers of other nations in fact from the perspect of the Working Class Unity of workers of other Nations against all Capitialist Governments and better wages and conditions is the go.we should help and support ,financially ,Morally and with Industrial and political actions the Workers of Asia . They sould have the same rights and living standards that we "enjoy"not the opposite. Joe Hockey ,please let me at it Politically anywhere any time.Smash the Social security Safety net the generation before me established at your Political and Physical peril Hockey. over YOUR dead body matey! BTW,Corporatisation of the State is a Indicator of a Fascist Government.Fascist tendency's emerging in traditionally Democratic based political formations is an Indicator of approaching Socialist Revolution.GOOODDY keep it up Hockey. prepare for a double dissolution and elections by the end of the Year and the total collapse of the ALP as a political Party worthy of the name.Hooorayyyyy.Do0 you reckon the forth coming Lib\Nat Landslide of all landslides will initiate a militant response from the Working Class well anyone that thinks the coming destruction of the oldest Party of Australian Capitialism,won't ignite a upsurge in the Class struggle and a reentering of the working Class into independent political struggle ,is totally ignorant of History. Workers do not take the road of Revolution until they have no other chioce ,What chioce does the Australian politic system offer with one party rule ? one party rule defines direct class dictatorship .Remeber the Westminster system relies on a Government with effective Opposition ,will the ALP be a Effective opposition after the coming sooner then we think Election . Slipper has to step down ,the ALP has to have one of uit s members as speaker and Wilke is about to cross the floor on the Pokie Legislation,Good bye minority Government do the numbers .Hello federal election this year!
Can you see, this is one of the glitches in our democratic system, in this circumstance, of a non majority Govt, a false allegation, (not to say if this allegation is false, or true) has the potential to bring down a government, without any substantial recourse to the claimant. Another glitch, has been demonstrated in recent times, with the greens given more power than they democratically deserve. These are some of the questions, but what are the answers?
Wow philxx Your very passionate about this subject, so am i. Now i dont think our government will do anything, because they are on the payrolls of the bankers and their corporations. The only chance we have imo to stop this trend is to raise our voices through demonstrations, if a million people decended upon Canberra the government would have to listen whther they like it or not. Our governments should never have sold of monopolies like our utilities, the commonweath bank, telstra, public transport etc etc, all these produce a money pool worth billions of dollars every year, a money pool that can support the government of the day with revenue. I agree with all of what you say and its good to see that others are thinking on a similar base. Your comment whih i have highlithed in red below really hits home at how much things have changed.
yes ,thanks its what my parents taught me they went through the depression and WW2 and they said that the next generation must live better then the last that is the BENCHMARK of human social progress ,not a single Working Class or middle class parent can look into the face of their children,and honestly say this today! No it is Capitialisms role now to drive us back to the conditions of my Mother and Fathers childhoods. Over their dead bodies I say yep ,if Capitialist blood has to flow so be it! Its what one does with parasites isn't it burn them off and stamp on them ,the Organism is always more important then the Parasite on its body.Yes mass demonstrations are a part of Revolutions so is arming and insurrection .Lets hope they see the writing on the wall and fall over easy ,you never know but in case armed insurrection is an option we should keep open ! don't like Terrorisers of pensioners in any Government i tend to defend the weak against the strong.Personally! Before the Working Class goes revolutionary on their arses lets try General strikes for starters see how they act with that ,personally I think Canberra will be less populated in a real hurry if a General strike broke out !
Like any bad egg the ALP will return, but not for a decade or so, and not until the ALP off-load anyone who has had any connection with the troll queen and her previous bastard Government. The ALP will re-emerge with all new faces on their team, but they will still have the unions and back room mafia controlling them - nothing will ever change that, until the ALP changes its complete current ethos. Speak to anyone under the age of thirty, and the majority will tell you that unions are a bunch of tossers just in the game for themselves and not the workers anymore. The ALP is a party in absolute denial, and until they get representatives into their party who are willing to get back out into mainstream Australia and start listening and hearing to what the people say and want, and really starting to help Australian workers, then the ALP is always going to be a party dominated and ruled by union and backroom thugs whos only ambition is to look after themselves and not the people. Until the ALP could show me they have implemented a completely new ethos, then I would not trust any of them to feed my dog, because we all folks, actions speak louder than words, and right now representatives from the ALP have just been a bunch a pathological liars. If the ALP re-emerge with candidates or staffers even remotely connected to the troll queens Government, then I will know, once again, are not serious about moving forward.
I agree Culldav, this is the poorest government I have see. I thought Frasers was poor, but this one takes the cake. I didn't think we could get any worse than the C' Rudd. Boy was I wrong. Because they are in denial things wont change. Perhaps it is not a new ethos you are looking for but an old and forgotten Labor ethos....." Party for the Working Man". not "ALP for the ALP". As we have discussed before I can not remember a time when I have been so dissallusioned with politics in Australia. I am desperate for the light of truth, however hard it is to hear. We the people have to take some of the responsibility, because we don't want to hear the bad stuff, only the empty promises. What is the chances a party comes out and says, " sorry Australia but we have no money left, and nothing to borrow against. We can't promise you anything because we can't pay for it. It will be tough going for some years, you will have to hang tough", that they will get in to power ? NIL. Hard as it is for me to say, but we are getting what we deserve. Scrap mandatory voting, and make everyone pay for the right to vote. That way we will get rid of the idiots that don't realise or understand what a freedom and privelidge it is to vote. Then we can give the money raised to some charitable organisations.
I totally agree with everything you said. We are getting politicians that we accept and deserve. I simply cannot believe that there are still people in the community that agree that its okay and acceptable for politicians of any party to lie and deceive us. I agree that we need to get rid of these idiotic voters who will only vote for a party or candidate depending on which one of them is handing out money so they can buy a “big screen” TV or other gadget. I, like you slippery have also lived with some bad Governments, but have never seen one deteriorate or crack up this bad before - they have imploded form within.
