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Perrottet tells Ward to quit or face expulsion from Parliament after sexual assault charges
By Alexandra Smith and Lucy Cormack
NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet faces another byelection test – expected before the federal election – after he demanded the resignation of Kiama MP Gareth Ward, who has been charged with sexual assault.
After a lengthy investigation, sex crimes detectives charged Mr Ward on Tuesday with three counts of assault with an act of indecency, one count of sexual assault without consent, and one count of common assault.
Kiama MP Gareth Ward has been issued an ultimatum to resign from parliament or face expulsion.Credit: Brook Mitchell
Police will allege in court Mr Ward, 40, indecently assaulted a 17-year-old boy at Meroo Meadow, in Shoalhaven, in February 2013 and sexually abused a 27-year-old man in Sydney in September 2015.
Mr Perrottet released a statement a short time after Mr Ward was charged, urging him to resign from State Parliament effective immediately or else the government would move a motion to have him expelled.
Only four MPs have been expelled in the history of the NSW Parliament, the last in 1969.
The Premier’s ultimatum ensures another byelection for the Coalition, which is in minority government after it lost former transport minister Andrew Constance’s seat of Bega last month.
Gareth Ward in an appearance with Dominic Perrottet last February.Credit: Nick Moir
The Perrottet government already relies on the vote of two crossbench MPs to pass legislation in the lower house and another loss in a byelection would increase its reliance on the crossbench to three.
Another former Liberal MP, John Sidoti, is also on the crossbench while he is the subject of a corruption inquiry.
A byelection in Kiama could be held before the federal election, expected in May, and although it is on a safe margin of 12 per cent it was held by Labor before the Coalition won government in 2011.
The state seat of Kiama overlaps the battleground federal seat of Gilmore, which is being contested by Mr Constance. NSW is crucial to the Morrison government’s re-election chances and Gilmore is seen as a must-win for the Liberals. It is held by Labor on just 2.6 per cent.
Mr Ward attended Oak Flats police station on the South Coast on Tuesday, where he was charged and granted conditional bail to appear at Port Kembla Local Court on May 18.
In his statement, Mr Perrottet said Mr Ward was entitled to defend himself against the charges, but insisted he “must do that as a private citizen”.
“While Mr Ward is entitled to the presumption of innocence, as any citizen is, the standards expected of an elected member of Parliament are not compatible with the seriousness of the charges he is facing,” he said. “Should Mr Ward not resign, the government will move a motion to remove him from the Parliament.”
Mr Ward wrote to constituents on Tuesday and said he totally rejected the allegations against him and hoped to bring the matter to trial as soon as possible.
“I am innocent, and I intend to prove it,” Mr Ward said.
“While I strongly support the right of genuine victims to bring forward allegations, accused persons equally are entitled to the presumption of innocence, have the right to refute allegations made against them and should be allowed the opportunity to defend themselves from claims that are simply untrue.”
Mr Ward was forced to resign from the government and move to the crossbench in May last year after he revealed himself to be the subject of a criminal inquiry into sexual abuse allegations.
At the time he said he had not been contacted by police about the allegations and denied any wrongdoing.
Police later confirmed detectives from the child abuse and sex crimes squad had formed a strike force to investigate separate allegations.
A brief of evidence about the alleged offences was submitted to the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions for consideration.
Mr Ward, who is legally blind, was the first disabled MP to hold the disability portfolio. He was also the former minister for families.
NSW Labor leader Chris Minns said the opposition would support a motion of expulsion.
“Clearly, the position of the member for Kiama is completely untenable, given the serious nature of the charges levelled against him this morning,” Mr Minns said.
The Premier also wrote to the state director of the NSW Liberal Party, Chris Stone, to ask that Mr Ward be expelled from the party.
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