Mark Latham's extraordinary response to accusations he had SEX in his office
The former Labor leader addressed his unfolding sex scandal directly for the first time on Saturday, having generally limited his comments to posts on X or 2SM radio.
Latham read his defence against the allegations levelled by Ms Matthews from a four-page document in Camden, southwest Sydney, on Saturday morning.
Ms Matthews claims the MP has inflicted 'a sustained pattern' of psychological, financial and emotional abuse against her for almost three years.
She is seeking an apprehended violence order against the one-time federal opposition leader, alleging vile acts 'including defecating on me before sex and refusing to let me wash'.
Latham told the crowd his relationship with Ms Matthews fell apart during an argument on the night of the Rosehill Racecourse sale vote. He claimed Ms Matthews was covered in mud when she allegedly confronted him.
'This was like something from World War Z,' he said.
'(But) one thing's abundantly clear - what we had for over two years was a sexed-up, consensual, open arrangement between adults with a fair bit of other contacts, such as fun days of the races, thrown in. I didn't make any moral judgment about her.'
Latham went on to say the pair shared a consensual relationship, adding that 'probably 95 per cent of the things she's complaining about, she initiated'.
'So the media disease here... is to take this stuff which is not rational, not true, from someone who... is obviously not thinking clearly about anything and exploit her for these salacious smutty stories that you run about someone's sex life,' he said.
He didn't deny accusations that he had had sex with Ms Matthews in his parliamentary office, saying that people could 'write whatever they like'.
'Members of parliament are allowed to run their own office,' Latham said.
'These are not matters of public interest… but the truth is, members of parliament have privilege for whatever happens in their office, it is their own domain.'
During questions from gathered reporters, a female journalist pushed Latham on whether it was appropriate to have sex in a workplace.
'I'm not dealing in your salacious, voyeuristic exercise,' he said.
When she followed up on another allegation later in the press conference, Latham launched his own attack, telling the journalist she was 'shaking'.
'You must be worried about (being a) voyeur. Oh, shaky fake media, fake news,' he mocked. The journalist pointed out she had been filming with her phone camera for a least 15 minutes prior.
When another journalist pointed out that sex in a workplace would be a 'sackable offence in the private sector or anywhere else', Latham responded: 'Well, it's not in the NSW Parliament, ok'.
Latham said the subpoenas served by his lawyer, that requested the communications between Billionaire WiseTech boss CEO Richard White and Ms Matthews, had not been intended to intimidate her, like she alleged.
Instead, he insisted they were to test Ms Matthews' allegations in court that he had made her have sex with other men.
'She's falsely claimed in her private application to the court that I made her have sex with other people, so this allows us to interrogate the people that, unprompted by me, … she's had sex with, and there are many,' Latham alleged.
'So the (subpoenas are) directed in part to get information that's relevant to her application so it can be tested in the court, which, is the process of justices.'
Daily Mail Australia is not suggesting the abuse claims against Latham are substantiated, only that they have been levelled against him by Ms Matthews.
The latest twist in the legal saga came on Friday when the politician's lawyer Zali Burrows served WiseTech global billionaire Richard White and Ms Matthews with a subpoena on Friday.
The subpoena requested emails, text messages, and OnlyFans direct messages between Mr White and Ms Matthews, who connected on LinkedIn in 2023.
Daily Mail Australia exclusively revealed Ms Matthews' past as an OnlyFans content creator earlier this week. She posted graphic images and videos of herself under the suggestive name Bondi C** Sl** from 2019 to 2023.
Mr White is not accused of any wrongdoing and this publication is not suggesting Mr White and Ms Matthews engaged in a sexual relationship, only that Latham joked about her performing a sex act on the tech billionaire.
Only hours later, a series of text exchanges were revealed by The Australian in which he joked Ms Matthews should perform oral sex on Mr White to 'celebrate', after four board members left the firm and he was appointed executive chairman in February.
Latham joked Ms Matthews was owed 'big money' by the 70-year-old businessman and should 'get that compo DNA!!!!'
Ms Matthews replied that there were 'not really grounds' to support such a claim.
'I could kill my professional career. Remember, I don't have a secure job,' she said.
Some of these texts were reportedly sent by Latham (pictured) from the parliamentary floor
It is not the first time text exchanges between the ex-lovers have been published, with sexually explicit WhatsApp messages between the pair made public this week by The Daily Telegraph.
Latham told Daily Mail Australia the outlet's reproduction of the messages was 'not accurate'.
These messages included a series of lewd exchanges on February 20, 2025 during parliamentary sitting hours.
'Very hard thinking about you,' he wrote to Ms Matthews shortly after 11am, before following up with a series of suggestive emojis.
'Need badly to taste you,' he wrote that afternoon, alongside an emoji of a tongue.
'Made it back for first vote after dinner,' he said at 8.38pm.
Latham has claimed the communications did not impact his work.
Ms Matthews declined to comment on her OnlyFans past but her lawyer told Daily Mail Australia that her client 'has been subjected to character assassination, reputational damage and trial by media'.
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