Federal minister Christian Porter has denied allegations he raped a 16-year-old girl in the 1980s.
Federal minister Christian Porter has denied allegations he raped a 16-year-old girl in the 1980s.
Mr Porter, who has engaged MinterEllison as counsel, strongly denied the allegations in a press conference at noon Perth time, saying that what had been alleged simply did not happen.
Mr Porter said the allegations appeared to refer to a period in 1988 during an end-of-school debating competition at a Sydney University.
An emotional Mr Porter denied the allegations and detailed the 'unrestrained' series of accusations made, insisting that he was still yet to be formally presented with the details of the allegations.
“Prior to last Friday’s report by the ABC, no-one in law enforcement or politics or the media put any allegations to me at all,” he said.
“I was aware of a whispering campaign over the last few months, but no-one has ever put the specifics of any allegations to me at all.
“The truth is that nothing in the allegations that have been printed ever happened.
“The only information I have about the allegations is what is circulating online and in certain media outlets.
"Had the accusation ever been put to me before it had been printed, I would have at least been able to say the only thing I can say, the only thing I'm ever going to say, and that is that nothing in the allegations that have been printed ever happened."
As a former Crown prosecutor, Mr Porter said he remained silent in order to ensure he did not obstruct the police investigation and apologised to his parliamentary colleagues who had become the target of mounting speculation in recent days.
"In the last week, I have tried to do what I have done for the duration of my life: respected the rules, the processes and the law," he said.
"Because of my background, it is a process I know well, and I did not comment so as to not risk prejudicing any investigation.
"I have waited until the New South Wales Police concluded their investigation into the matter, I have remained silent and it was a very difficult decision.
"In the time that I have been silent, I have been subjected to the most wild, intense, unrestrained series of accusations that I can remember in the history of modern Australian politics.
"The difficult part about following those rules is that my colleagues become the target of allegations and speculation themselves.
"I have not yet been contacted by anyone putting details of the allegation against me. Some of the stuff online is just incredible."
Mr Porter said he did not plan to step down or step aside as attorney general, telling reporters that if he stepped down over allegations that were untrue, there would be "no need" for an attorney general as there would be no rule of law left in Australia.
Mr Porter said he had, however, asked Prime Minister Scott Morrison for permission to take some time away in order to seek mental health support in the wake of the allegations.
Today’s news comes five months after an ABC investigation alleged attorney general had engaged in lewd behaviour throughout his time at university and career as a prosecutor.
Mr Porter later rejected allegations he had engaged in an extramarital affair with a staffer and apologised for what he characterised as “rowdy” behaviour during his time at university.
Mr Morrison said earlier in the week that new allegations had been referred to the Australian Federal Police with Treasurer Josh Frydenberg saying they were the best people to be dealing with the matters.
The accusations also follow on from those made by Brittany Higgins, formerly a staffer to Senator Linda Reynolds, who in February lodged a complaint with the AFP alleging she had been raped inside Parliament House by a staffer in 2019.
Since then, three other staffers have also claimed they were sexually assaulted by the same individual.
Senator Reynolds has since apologised and said that Ms Higgins’ welfare and right to privacy were always paramount to her.
