Deputy Opposition Senate leader Michaelia Cash has been unmasked as the woman Amanda Stoker confided in when a Liberal senator allegedly “squeezed her bottom” at work.
Liberal Senator David Van was under pressure to quit on Friday after three different women made allegations about him.
Ms Stoker came forward to accuse Senator Van of squeezing her bottom at an office party after Independent Senator Lidia Thorpe claimed he had assaulted her in the halls of parliament.
A third unnamed woman has also come forward.
The Liberal Party faces new questions over who knew about allegations against Senator Van’s alleged misconduct and what was done about them.
Ms Stoker said she took her concerns about Senator Van to a senior Liberal three years ago.
News.com.au has confirmed that person was Senator Michaelia Cash, who learned of the complaint in 2020.
At the time, Senator Cash held the portfolio of employment and Brittany Higgins, who sparked a national reckoning with her own sexual abuse allegations, was her press secretary.
In a statement, ex-senator Amanda Stoker confirmed she complained in November, 2020 that Senator Van “inappropriately touched me at an informal social gathering in a parliamentary office.”
“He did so by squeezing my bottom twice. By its nature and by its repetition, it was not accidental.
“That action was not appropriate. It was unprofessional and uninvited,” she said.
“I raised the matter with Senator Van at a meeting the following day. I described the action, told him it was unacceptable. Contemporaneous notes of the meeting were taken and it never happened again.
“I promptly advised a senior female colleague about the incident, and of the action I had taken. I did so to ensure that if there were any other incidents of which I was not aware, or any future reports, they could be dealt with appropriately. ”
In a statement, Senator Cash confirmed she spoke to Senator Stoker at the time and followed her request to keep the matter confidential.
“Amanda’s wishes were clear and I followed them,” Senator Cash told news.com.au.
Senator Cash has led the charge this week in Parliament over who knew what and when in Labor over Ms Higgins’ plan to take her story public in 2021.
This week, Brittany Higgins published a series of tweets questioning when Senator Cash became aware of her own allegation.
Ms Higgins posted partial transcripts of a conversation she had with Senator Cash and her COS that were covertly recorded.
Senator Cash has always maintained she was not made aware of Ms Higgins’ allegations until February, 2021.
A spokesman for Senator Cash said: “The issue of when Senator Cash and her chief of staff became aware of the allegations was the subject of evidence given under oath and has been tested in the ACT Supreme Court.”
Earlier, Senator David Van declared his “good reputation has been wantonly savaged” as Liberal leader Peter Dutton revealed a third woman has emerged with complaints about the senator’s conduct.
“I am utterly shattered by the events of the past days and stunned that my good reputation can be so wantonly savaged without due process or accountability,” Senator Van said in a statement.
“I will fully co-operate with whatever process Mr Dutton proposes to determine these matters as quickly and fairly as possible.”
“While I understand the public interest is high, I will not be making any more public statements on the allegations until a proper examination of these claims is concluded.”