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Latham portrait stays on the hook in Labor party room

Latham portrait stays on the hook in Labor party room

Perth Now21-07-2025
A picture of former Labor leader Mark Latham will keep hanging in the party's caucus room as he faces domestic violence allegations.
Mr Latham is accused by his former partner Nathalie Matthews of a "sustained pattern" of abuse.
Her allegations include he pressured her to take part in "degrading" sex acts.
Mr Latham strongly denies the untested claims made in a civil court apprehended violence order application by Ms Matthews, saying he has "broken no laws".
Calls have grown since the allegations were raised for his official portrait in Labor's federal party room to be removed.
But a Labor caucus meeting on Monday was told a "unanimous consensus position" had been reached where the photo would remain, but with a caption providing context.
The words will read: "In 2017 Mark Latham was expelled from the Australian Labor Party and banned for life. His actions do not accord with Labor values and fail to meet the standards we expect and demand."
Mr Latham sits as an independent in the NSW upper house and faces calls to resign over sexually explicit messages allegedly sent to his former partner while sitting in the chamber of parliament.
The decision to add context to Mr Latham's portrait was the right one, Finance Minister Katy Gallagher said.
"It's finding the balance, you can't erase history, we can't pretend he wasn't our leader, he was and so there he sits in the leaders' timeline," she told reporters in Canberra."But it's a recognition ... his behaviour and attitudes don't reflect the modern Australian Labor Party."
Senator Gallagher said the wording allowed people to feel something had been done.
"It will exist there forever on our leaders wall," she said.
"It's a pretty strong statement."
Mr Latham lost his bid for the nation's top job at the 2004 federal election to former Liberal prime minister John Howard.
The campaign was marked by his aggressive handshake with Mr Howard outside the ABC's radio studios on election-eve.
The infamous episode was largely blamed for his election defeat and delivered the Howard government a fourth term.
The Federal Court in 2024 ordered Mr Latham pay independent NSW politician Alex Greenwich $140,000 in damages over a homophobic social media post.
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