Prime Minister Scott Morrison has said concerns over the treatment of the late Labor Senator Kimberley Kitching by members of her own party should not be dismissed after Opposition leader Anthony Albanese ruled out an investigation into the allegations.
Senator Kitching died last week, aged 52, from a suspected heart attack.
Her close friend and former Labor leader Bill Shorten last week revealed the Victorian senator had been under pressure due to internal party politics and a preselection battle.
The Australian also reported on Wednesday that Senator Kitching faced being ostracised by senior members of Labor’s Senate leadership team in the lead-up to her sudden death.
Mr Morrison said the claims about Senator Kitching's treatment by fellow party members were concerning and demanded further examination.
"These are distressing claims and I don't think they can just be dismissed," Mr Morrison told reporters in Perth on Wednesday.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison speaks at the Crown Perth Convention Centre in Perth. Source: AAP / RICHARD WAINWRIGHT/AAPIMAGE
SBS News has also been told Senator Kitching was removed from the party’s tactics committee for leaking last year — she was also demoted from the frontbench in 2021.
Opposition leader Anthony Albanese on Wednesday denied there was a cultural problem within his party and ruled out the prospect of an investigation.
“No, I'm going to pay respect to Kimberley Kitching by treating her with the respect that she deserves,” he told the Today Show.
“She made a contribution for too short a time to the Labor Party and to the Labor cause. Her family and friends are hurting today.”
Federal Opposition leader Anthony Albanese at a press conference after a visit to Solar Bollard Lighting in Brisbane. Source: AAP / DARREN ENGLAND/AAPIMAGE
"I have no doubt that the stress of politics in the machinations in the back rooms had its toll,” he told ABC Radio.
Former Labor MP and close friend Michael Danby also described Senator Kitching’s treatment as “nothing short of bullying”.
"Her treatment was beyond fair treatment and differences of opinions,” he told Sky News on Thursday.
The Australian reported Senator Kitching had faced being “isolated” from senior colleagues, including Penny Wong, Kristina Keneally and Katy Gallagher.
Senator Gallagher said “a number of assertions” published in The Australian were not correct.
“Senator Kitching’s death was a huge shock and deeply distressing to everyone who knew her,” she told ABC Radio.
“I just don’t think it’s respectful for us to enter into commentary or disagreement about particular aspects of it at this point in time.”
Senator Wong also refuted the claims.
“I’m simply not going to engage in commentary about some of the allegations which have been raised, even if others and I disagreed with them,” she said.
“Senator Kitching has passed away [and] that was tragic and shocking and many in the Labor family are grieving and loved ones are grieving.”
Senator Keneally declined to comment on the reports, but has previously said she would not engage in this kind of commentary out of respect for Senator Kitching's passing.
Senator Kitching entered the Senate in 2016 after she was preselected with the support of former leader and close friend Mr Shorten.
She established a name for herself advocating on issues of national security, including her strong stance on China.
This included becoming one of the founding members of a bipartisan parliamentary group called the Wolverines for their tough approach to Beijing.
She also strongly advocated for the adoption of Magnitsky-style laws in Australia to give the government the power to impose targeted sanctions against individuals linked to human rights abuses.
