The West Australian Greens’ MPs have urged the party to publicly release the key findings from its investigation into Senator Jordon Steele-John and expand the probe to include the Greens’ own processes for dealing with the issue.
This masthead revealed on Friday that the Greens created and maintained a secret dossier for 10 years that catalogued allegations against Steele-John and set out ways to shut down media coverage and monitor members who raised concerns on social media.
The WA senator took leave this week after seven Greens members wrote to federal leader David Shoebridge regarding “multiple allegations” about “his behaviour in the presence of women” between 2017 and 2025. Steele-John strongly denies claims against him, describing them as non-specific.
Shoebridge has ordered an independent investigation into allegations Steele-John made multiple inappropriate comments to women, this masthead revealed on Thursday, but the leader has refused to say whether the results of the inquiry should be made public.
The party’s four state MPs in WA parliament – Brad Pettitt, Sophie McNeill, Jess Beckerling and Tim Clifford – issued a statement on Friday night saying they considered “any allegations of this nature to be serious and concerning, especially when they involve elected representatives”.
“Women deserve to feel safe always, and must be able to bring forward complaints safely, and be heard and taken seriously when they do,” the statement said.
“We agree that this matter needs to be resolved via a fair, timely and independent investigation and that all parties are entitled to natural justice and procedural fairness.”
The MPs said they appreciated Shoebridge’s “swift and decisive response” in making sure the investigation started as soon as possible, as well as Steele-John’s willingness to address the allegations.
“The WA Greens MPs expect this process to be robust and transparent and we support the key findings of the investigation being made public,” they said.
“The WA Greens MPs support the investigation including an examination of the processes, including within the WA Greens, that have been followed in relation to this matter so far.”
The party has been managing complaints about Steele-John for about a decade, according to a crisis communications strategy obtained by this masthead. The 47-page dossier, stored on a Google Drive folder accessible to WA Greens and national Greens staff, was first drafted in 2016 and has been updated in the years since.
The document sets out ways to shut down media coverage of allegations about Steele-John, while also instructing taxpayer-funded Greens staff to monitor social media discussions and take screenshots of comments posted by party members.
Then state convenor Sophie Greer, who is now Steele-John’s chief of staff, was required to “reach out” to Greens members if they had posted something negative about the senator. Steele-John was to undergo training with Will Kelly, a senior media adviser to successive Greens leaders. Both were instructed to ensure then-leader Richard Di Natale was provided with information.
Shoebridge has insisted he was not aware of any allegations against Steele-John before the letter was sent to him this week. The letter asserts that the senator’s alleged behaviour towards women was well-known within the party.
Natassia Chrysanthos is Federal Political Correspondent. She has previously reported on immigration, health, social issues and the NDIS from Parliament House in Canberra.Connect via X or email.From our partners
Discover more from PressNewsAgency
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.