Anthony Albanese responds to Tanya Plibersek’s claims she would’ve been voted in as Labor leader
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Anthony Albanese has carefully dodged questions about Tanya Plibersek’s claims that she would have been voted Labor leader if she had thrown her hat into the ring.
The then deputy Labor leader had been considering running for the top job in May 2019.
It came after the Labor Party lost the federal election to Scott Morrison and the party desperately sought to replace its leader, Bill Shorten.
Ms Plibersek withdrew from the race before Anthony Albanese was voted into the leadership role, eventually becoming Prime Minister in May 2022.
Ms Plibersek said she felt confident she would have won the leadership challenge, revealing on Saturday that the decision was made so she could support her daughter, who had been abused by her ex-boyfriend.
The prime minister was questioned about Ms Plibersek’s leadership claims later on Saturday, but Mr Albanese declined to speak on the matter.
‘Tanya Plibersek is doing a great job as Environment Minister. She has been a friend of mine for a long time,” Albanese told reporters as she campaigned in the Aston constituency in Melbourne.
“I was elected unopposed after the 2019 election and won in 2022 and I’m so proud of the amazing team I have.”
Tanya Plibersek has revealed how she turned down the chance to become a Labor leader so she could support her daughter who was being abused by her boyfriend.
Anthony Albanese carefully dodged questions about Tanya Plibersek’s claims that she would have been voted Labor leader if she had thrown her hat into the ring.
Ms. Plibersek’s daughter, Anna, revealed that her mother had made the decision at the time with her in mind.
Anna had been abused for several years by her then-boyfriend and was preparing to take him to court.
Ms Plibersek said she wanted to support her daughter knowing that she would be called as a witness in legal proceedings, it was reported in Nine Newspapers’ Good weekend supplement.
“And the thought of not being able to be there for her through it was too much,” Ms. Plibersek said.
Anna had been abused by her then-boyfriend since the beginning of their relationship when they were teenagers.
He was around 18 years old when his mother was working as a deputy Labor leader and vying for the top job in 2019.
Anna was subjected to violent and controlling behavior, serious sexual assault, and financial abuse.
He kept the abuse a secret from his family for the first few days when he was still a teenager.
Anna lost weight, withdrew from her family and friends, became emotionally distant, sleeping all day and wandering the house at night.
“I experienced almost every type of abuse you can imagine,” he said.
Anna finally came forward and broke the silence with her family before her then-abusive boyfriend was taken to court.
He was found guilty of assault and it was revealed that he had been convicted of felonies against other girls, but he never went to jail.
Anna revealed that the court process had been a traumatic experience for her, as she spent four days on the witness stand.
Ms Plibersek revealed that she had been dealing with a traumatic family incident during the leadership vote and had chosen to stay with her daughter Anna (pictured with Anna, left, Louis, her husband Michael Coutts-Trotter and Joseph, a the right)
Ms. Plibersek said she was devastated after learning about the things that had been done to her daughter.
His friends and parents were also called to testify.
Anna revealed that one of the most difficult moments throughout the ordeal was watching her father, Michael Coutts-Trotter, cry.
She said that her mother cried all the time, when she was sad or happy, but her father had never cried in front of her.
Anna said she believed her mother would have been a great Labor leader had she not withdrawn from the competition for the top job in 2019.
Ms Plibersek told the publication: “I’m pretty sure if I had submitted I would have won.”
She added that she was devastated after learning about the things that had been done to her daughter.
“You wonder if you could or should have done more to protect your son,” he said.
Anna joined a group of friends to create the non-profit group The Survivor Hub in 2021.
The organization offers support to survivors through social media, online, and face-to-face meetings.
Ms Plibersek took to Twitter to support her daughter after she shared her survival story with the Channel Nine-owned newspaper.
“Like any parent, his father and I were devastated when we found out,” he said.
“We know this is a very common story in Australia. We know the statistics that one in five Australian women have experienced sexual violence since the age of 15.
“Those statistics are just devastating.”
Ms. Plibersek shared her story about her leadership ticket and her life in politics in the upcoming book ‘Tanya Plibersek: On Her Own Terms’.
The book was written by Margaret Simons and will be released on March 7.