Acting Chief Minister Yvette Berry is meeting with the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly, Joy Burch, this afternoon, and will meet the ACT Greens and the Canberra Liberals in coming days, to discuss an inquiry into how the Greens handled the allegations of sexual misconduct made against former MLA Johnathan Davis.
“Like others in the community, I am upset by the news about Mr Davis’ conduct,” Ms Berry said.
“I am most concerned on the impact that this may have had on young people in our community.
“Particularly, I have welcomed the public release of the ACT Greens internal party investigation into complaints about Mr Davis’ conduct.
“Given this investigation by the Greens led to the resignation of a member of the Legislative Assembly and a referral to Police, there are still questions that can only be answered comprehensively through an independent review into the handling of serious and perhaps criminal allegations.
“Yesterday, I met with Canberra Liberals Leader Elizabeth Lee and ACT Greens Leader Shane Rattenbury.
“Both indicated they are supportive of an independent inquiry, and I welcome their support.
“An independent review will provide assurances for the community that reporting obligations and relevant codes of conduct were met in a way that reflects the community’s expectations.
“It could also advise the parliament on how to prevent and respond to serious instances like this should they happen in the future.
“This is a sensitive matter, and a referral has, appropriately, been made to police.
“I think I can speak for everyone when I say we want to get this right.
“And so the inquiry (or inquiries) must be clearly defined and not impact the work of the police.
“Their investigations are independent.
“It is important that we learn what we can from this upsetting situation and ensure the community can have confidence in the work of the Assembly.”
Mr Rattenbury said: “We have been really open and transparent throughout this entire process. However, we acknowledge that as a society, we have a lot to learn about how we deal with these matters. It is important that we deal with them sensitively, appropriately, and without judgement.
“We welcome an independent inquiry or review that will help organisations learn how best to deal with these matters. We would also like to contribute our learnings to make the process of dealing with serious issues better.
“We reflect a number of other Parliaments have undertaken inquiries and looked at ways to improve accountability and transparency.”
Canberra Daily contacted Mr Rattenbury and Ms Lee’s offices for comment.
