Latham revives decade-old scandal against premier and his best mate

3 months ago 20

A decade-old allegation of sexual harassment against Jamie Clements, the former NSW Labor general secretary and Premier Chris Minns’ best friend, will be rehashed after the upper house backed Mark Latham’s call for documents related to the scandal.

Latham’s motion, which was supported unanimously in the upper house, will intensify the worsening feud between the rogue MP and the Labor Party, which has covered issues ranging from workers’ compensation reform to Latham’s behaviour in Macquarie Street.

Independent MP Mark Latham’s motion passed unanimously.

The motion called for documents held by the police and the government regarding the allegations made by former Labor staffer Stefanie Jones against Clements, which allegedly occurred in the office of Campbelltown MP Greg Warren.

The allegations against Clements first arose in June 2015 after Jones accused the then party boss of trying to kiss her.

Clements denied the allegations and, without admissions, signed an out-of-court agreement not to approach Jones for 12 months. He was also unable to apply for a parliamentary pass if she continued to work in Macquarie Street.

Latham called for all documents to be produced to parliament, including police files about the incident.

Jamie Clements denies accusations made against him.

During debate over whether parliament would release the documents, former Liberal MP Taylor Martin said he felt compelled to support Latham’s push because of the way he was treated as a result of allegations levelled against him.

Martin was expelled from the Liberal Party in 2024 after former federal MP Lucy Wicks complained to the party that he had sent a series of abusive text messages to her.

Martin worked for Wicks in her electoral office and then in Canberra, and the pair were in a secret relationship for a time.

In an emotional speech, Martin compared his treatment during his expulsion from the Liberal Party to Jones’ experience.

“I complained to the Liberal Party. Instead of investigating my complaint, I was set up and I was looked into and now I’m there in the corner and I’m not able to do my job any more,” he said.

“I know that there are many people who have a very similar story that early in their days of either working in this place, or the place in Canberra, or anywhere else in political parties. They are used and abused and thrown to the side.”

The government did not oppose Latham’s motion, but leader of the government in the upper house Penny Sharpe warned the parliament should “tread carefully” when dealing with any sensitive information that may come from the order for papers.

Warren told the Herald “this issue was thoroughly investigated and resolved over 10 years ago and I don’t intend to get involved in gutter politics”.

On Tuesday, Latham, under parliamentary privilege, revived the serious allegations against Clements, in the process casting aspersions on Minns, Property Minister Steve Kamper and Warren.

Latham called on Warren to resign, alleging he facilitated a later meeting between Clements and Jones, without her prior knowledge, as a means of helping the Labor boss resolve the situation.

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