Seven Coalition MPs have been forced to apologise to Parliament and staff for conduct that “disgusted” the House of Representatives Speaker.
Speaker Milton Dick issued a blistering statement to the House on Wednesday morning after several MPs pushed their way out of the chamber during a vote on Tuesday.
The incident happened just after 5.30pm after Mr Dick had directed attendants to lock the doors of the chamber to allow a vote to go ahead. But after his direction, several MPs continued to make their way out of the chamber.
Mr Dick said MPs physically pushed their way past an attendant, causing the woman to get stuck in the doorframe and injure her arm.
“I’m particularly disgusted by this behaviour and I will not tolerate it,” he said.
“For a staff member of this place to be treated in this way, when they are simply doing their job, is disrespectful and a very serious matter.”
Frontbench Coalition MPs Angus Taylor, Dan Tehan, Andrew Hastie and Ted O’Brien fronted the house on Wednesday to apologise for leaving the chamber after the Speaker’s directive.
Backbenchers Llew O’Brien, Zoe McKenzie and Sam Birrell also offered their apologies.
“I also apologise to the staff if they were involved in this. Our staff here in the chamber do an incredible job and one of them isn’t crowd control and I apologise to them for that,” Mr O’Brien said.
Mr Dick said Australians expected their elected representatives to maintain the highest standards of conduct and behaviour.
He understood MPs busy schedules, but no one was too busy to ensure the safety of staff.
“I’m committed to ensuring that this building and this chamber is a safe and respectful place of work for all,” he said.
– with AAP
