Sarah Hanson-Young says 'women don't like to be watched' after PM's comments on Nauru spy claims

Updated

Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young has attacked the Prime Minister for saying she was being "looked after", not spied on, while she was on Nauru.

A former staff member of Wilson Security, the company in charge of security at Nauru's immigration detention centre, has accused the company of spying on the senator when she visited the Pacific nation in December 2013.

Prime Minister Tony Abbott said he did not accept the "characterisation" that the senator was spied on, rather, she was being "looked after" while she was there.

Senator Hanson-Young is furious with the PM's response.

"I don't like to be watched, women don't like to be watched – it's creepy," she said.

"I can't believe the Prime Minister thinks this is OK, even the company has said this is not OK."

The allegation from the former Wilson guard was contained in a submission to a Senate inquiry into operations on Nauru.

Wilson Security denied that it had spied on the senator, but said it was aware of individuals who attended her hotel at the same time.

It said their primary motivation was "the security of the senator".

"This activity was not authorised by Wilson Security," the company said in a statement.

The company added the matter was investigated and those involved had been disciplined for "acting beyond their brief".

Senator Hanson-Young said she had sought her own legal advice on the matter and would be referring it to the Parliamentary Privileges Committee.

"It's a pretty serious accusation that a private company paid for by the Australian taxpayer was spying on a Federal Member of Parliament," she said.

'No evidence' of spying, Dutton says

Immigration Minister Peter Dutton said Senator Hanson-Young had "no evidence" she had been spied on.

"A lot of these unfounded statements are made and they are proved to be wrong at a later time. If she's got evidence, produce it," he said.

Whistleblower and independent MP Andrew Wilkie said he was deeply troubled by the allegation and would refer it to the AFP to investigate the claim immediately.

"To spy on a senator is obviously wrong on every level, including legally," he said in a statement.

Mr Wilkie said he also wanted to know if there had been any "official collusion".

He said if there was systemic misbehaviour within Wilson, then the company's contract should be terminated and legal proceedings initiated against the ringleaders.

Greens leader Richard Di Natale said the allegations were very serious and revealed a "quasi-police state where members of parliament are spied on".

"It shows you the depth to which some of the organisations involved in the issue of detention centres off shore will go to ensure that the cloak of secrecy is maintained, and the reason they do it is because if they know that the Australian community really understand what's going on and get an insight into what's going on in those detention centres, they would be appalled," he said.

In the submission, the former guard also alleged Wilson supervisors shredded reports raising "concerns for safety", and employed military imposters.

The company strongly denies the allegations of "corrupt behaviour" and "deceptive conduct".

Wilson executives were grilled for over an hour, taking 50 questions on notice, at the first Senate Committee hearing on Nauru on May 19.

Wilson Security is expected to reappear in front of the Senate Committee this month.

Topics: sarah-hanson-young, immigration, refugees, community-and-society, federal-government, nauru, australia

First posted