Former prime minister says he was ‘visiting a friend’ but refused to confirm exactly who he saw

This article is more than 9 months old

This article is more than 9 months old

The former prime minister Tony Abbott has been filmed leaving the Melbourne prison where the convicted paedophile Cardinal George Pell is being held, with the former Coalition leader saying he was there “visiting a friend”.

Abbott was filmed leaving the Melbourne Assessment Prison on Monday morning by a Seven News crew, but refused to confirm exactly who in the jail he was visiting.

“Look, I was simply visiting a friend, that’s all,” said Abbott, who then ignored a question about “what sort of spirits” Pell was in, before stepping into a vehicle.

What has happened with Cardinal George Pell's appeal against child sex abuse conviction? Read more

Abbott said in February that he telephoned Pell, a friend and mentor, after it was first revealed Pell had been convicted of child abuse offences.

The former senator Derryn Hinch said on Twitter that Abbott’s visit to the prison on Monday was a “disgrace and a cruel insult to his victims”.

In March, Pell was sentenced to six years in jail after being convicted of sexually abusing two 13-year-old choirboys in 1996.

The former Liberal prime minister John Howard wrote a character reference for Pell after he was convicted for child sexual abuse.

Australia’s highest court has agreed to refer Pell’s case to the full bench of the high court to hear appeal arguments. That hearing won’t be held until at least March 2020.

Attempts to reach Abbott on Monday night for further comment were unsuccessful.

with Australian Associated Press