Scott Morrison has “invited” Grace Tame to disclose which government-funded organisation was involved in a threatening phone call, conceding more information was needed to get to the bottom of why it happened.
Ms Tame dropped the bombshell during her joint National Press Club address with Brittany Higgins on Wednesday.
She said that on August 17 last year she was phoned by a “senior member of a government-funded organisation”.
“(They asked) for my word that I would not say anything damning about the Prime Minister on the evening of the next Australian of the Year Awards,” she said.
“‘You are an influential person. He will have a fear,’ they said.
“‘What kind of fear’, I asked myself?
“And then I heard the words ‘with an election coming soon’.”
Ms Tame declined to name the individual or the organisation involved.
In the immediate wake of Ms Tame’s allegation, the Prime Minister’s office issued a statement, saying it had no knowledge of the phone call before Ms Tame disclosed it and an investigation would be launched.
On Thursday, during a fiery Question Time, the Prime Minister conceded they needed more information from Ms Tame.
“While Ms Tame has declined to name the individual, I would at least invite her to advise the government which government-funded agency she is referring to,” Mr Morrison said.
“(Those comments) were not made on my behalf nor would they ever would be and they were not made with my knowledge in any way shape or form or by my office.
“I and my government consider the actions and the statements of the individual as it was explained as absolutely unacceptable.
“Inquiries can only be made where we can be directed and those inquiries should be seeking to get answers to the matters that have been raised.
“If anyone has any information on that then I would encourage them to bring it forward so the matter can be properly addressed.”
Women’s Safety Minister Anne Ruston, who was one of three female Liberal frontbenchers who attended the address, said the government would respect if Ms Tame didn’t want the matter pursued.
xjmtzyw“If she does, of course we will be happy to make sure we get to the bottom of the issue,” she said.
Senator Ruston said the first time the government had been made aware of the phone call was during Wednesday’s address.
“I’m more than happy today to say to Ms Tame if she would like me or anybody else to have a look at what happened last year,” Senator Ruston said.
“We’d be keen to get to the bottom of what happened, but Ms Tame is in control of what we do with this piece of information from here.”
Thursday’s developments come after Ms Tame slammed Mr Morrison’s immediate announcement of an investigation, saying it missed the point.
“Scott conducting an investigation into who made the phone call is THE VERY SAME embedded structural silencing culture that drove the call in the first place and misses the point entirely,” she posted on Twitter on Wednesday.
“Stop deflecting, Scott. It’s not about the person who made the call. It’s the fact they felt like they had to do it.”
The Australia Day Council has denied the call came from within its ranks.
