WEBVTT - Danica De Giorgio | 12 December 0:00:01.320 --> 0:00:06.360 Live on Sky News Australia. This is Denique to. 0:00:06.480 --> 0:00:10.680 Georgio, Hello and welcome to the show. Coming up tonight. 0:00:10.760 --> 0:00:14.120 The expenses scandal widens as Susan Lee offers to sit 0:00:14.200 --> 0:00:18.760 down with the Prime Minister to reform entitlements. Victoria exposed 0:00:18.800 --> 0:00:22.440 as the gag order capital of Australia, as the identity 0:00:22.520 --> 0:00:26.360 of a rapist from a high profile family is finally revealed, 0:00:26.800 --> 0:00:30.280 and Labour's social media ban on shaky ground as Reddit 0:00:30.520 --> 0:00:34.839 launcher's high Court action but first tonight, the expenses scandal 0:00:34.880 --> 0:00:37.640 in golfing Canberra is widening by the day. 0:00:38.040 --> 0:00:38.839 It's been revealed. 0:00:38.840 --> 0:00:44.239 Indigenous Australians Minister Melanderri McCarthy build taxpayers almost thirty thousand 0:00:44.240 --> 0:00:48.080 dollars a week for staff travel during the election campaign. 0:00:48.640 --> 0:00:52.720 So each week she charged you thirty thousand dollars. 0:00:52.720 --> 0:00:53.440 Can you believe it? 0:00:53.880 --> 0:00:57.920 According to the Independent Parliamentary Expenses Authority, the Northern Territory 0:00:58.000 --> 0:01:01.120 senator spent more than three hundred and fifty two thousand 0:01:01.160 --> 0:01:05.399 dollars on domestic travel for eighteen employees in the three 0:01:05.440 --> 0:01:09.160 months to July. In fact, she outspent the Foreign Minister 0:01:09.240 --> 0:01:12.520 Penny Wong and Defense Minister Richard Miles by almost fifty 0:01:12.560 --> 0:01:16.919 thousand and one hundred thousand, respectively. Only the Prime Minister 0:01:17.000 --> 0:01:20.760 and former Opposition leader Peter Dutton spent more on staff 0:01:20.800 --> 0:01:24.240 travel during the same period. Look, it's just not stacking up, 0:01:24.640 --> 0:01:25.840 is it now. 0:01:25.840 --> 0:01:27.120 Look the Senator says. 0:01:26.880 --> 0:01:30.360 That travel and expenses have been accessed and reported in 0:01:30.520 --> 0:01:34.520 line with the relevant rules and guidelines. But that's the 0:01:34.600 --> 0:01:37.080 same line we've heard day in, day out from Anaka 0:01:37.080 --> 0:01:40.480 Wells this week to justify her one hundred thousand dollars 0:01:40.520 --> 0:01:46.760 New York flights, the Paris troop, threadbow ski holiday, expensive meals, concerts, events, limousines, 0:01:46.800 --> 0:01:51.160 including taking her husband on some of these lavish adventures. 0:01:52.240 --> 0:01:54.920 So if most of what happens is indeed within the rules, 0:01:55.720 --> 0:01:59.320 then clearly the rules are not working. And if you're 0:01:59.360 --> 0:02:02.680 throw in Green and Senator Sarah Hanson Young splashing fifty 0:02:02.760 --> 0:02:05.320 k of your money to fly her lobbyist husband to 0:02:05.400 --> 0:02:08.600 and from Canberra, and of course Labor Minister Don Farrell 0:02:08.639 --> 0:02:12.200 flying his family around the country at the cost of ninety. 0:02:11.919 --> 0:02:14.880 Thousand dollars, this stinks to the high heavens. 0:02:15.720 --> 0:02:18.560 And after days of stopping short of calling for a review, 0:02:18.760 --> 0:02:22.200 Kieran Gilbert on Sky News revealed today that Opposition leader 0:02:22.240 --> 0:02:24.960 Susan Lee has written a letter to the Prime Minister 0:02:25.360 --> 0:02:30.280 offering bipartisan report reform on the expense of scandal. 0:02:31.680 --> 0:02:34.400 I can sit down with the Prime Minister anytime and 0:02:34.560 --> 0:02:39.080 go through measures that he would like to propose to 0:02:39.200 --> 0:02:44.520 implement to restore that public trust in the system that 0:02:44.720 --> 0:02:50.000 delivers these entitlements to parliamentarians. That's really important because my 0:02:50.120 --> 0:02:52.760 focus now is actually on people who are struggling in 0:02:52.800 --> 0:02:54.920 the lead up to Christmas and what this means for them. 0:02:55.840 --> 0:02:58.840 Good on Susan Lee, who, of course herself has previously 0:02:58.960 --> 0:03:01.720 been caught up in a skill you recall in twenty 0:03:01.760 --> 0:03:04.560 seventeen she u is a taxpayer funded trip to purchase 0:03:04.600 --> 0:03:07.920 an apartment on the Gold Coast and build taxpayers to 0:03:07.960 --> 0:03:10.840 attend two New Year's Eve events hosted by a prominent 0:03:10.919 --> 0:03:16.240 Queensland businesswoman and donor. That scandal forced her resignation, so 0:03:16.320 --> 0:03:19.919 it's kind of an extraordinary turn of events now for her. 0:03:20.720 --> 0:03:24.600 But any review into entitlements could engulf both sides of politics. 0:03:25.000 --> 0:03:28.320 The reality is there is no political cover when the 0:03:28.360 --> 0:03:31.280 political class are conducting themselves in a way that is 0:03:31.680 --> 0:03:36.600 beyond what is expected, and after ducking and weaving any 0:03:36.640 --> 0:03:40.680 accountability this week, Labour is now apparently open to change, 0:03:41.080 --> 0:03:44.040 but it won't do so off its own accord. It 0:03:44.080 --> 0:03:48.040 will only do it if recommended by the Independent Watchdog 0:03:48.560 --> 0:03:51.000 after it reviews Minister Wells as spending. 0:03:52.120 --> 0:03:54.960 That's obviously an opportunity for them to have a look 0:03:54.960 --> 0:03:58.360 at those claims, but also to provide any broader advice 0:03:58.400 --> 0:04:01.960 and recommendations about these rules. I think these rules are important. 0:04:02.280 --> 0:04:05.320 We would welcome that advice and recommendations if they then 0:04:05.400 --> 0:04:08.040 have to be enacted through legislation. I'm sure that's what 0:04:08.080 --> 0:04:08.520 we would do. 0:04:09.400 --> 0:04:09.600 Yeah. 0:04:09.640 --> 0:04:12.200 Susan Lee says that that doesn't even go far enough. 0:04:13.200 --> 0:04:18.080 What Minister Anika Wells has done is scandalous, clearly scandalous, 0:04:18.520 --> 0:04:24.120 and the whole country is reeling from all of the 0:04:24.160 --> 0:04:27.919 information that they've received about what she has done. She 0:04:28.000 --> 0:04:30.920 has not shown an ounce of contrition, but it is 0:04:31.200 --> 0:04:35.520 incumbent on the Prime Minister who trumpeted this code of conduct, 0:04:35.720 --> 0:04:40.520 who talked about transparency and integrity and new standards and 0:04:40.600 --> 0:04:44.240 on and on and on. Why is he silent about 0:04:44.279 --> 0:04:44.919 this minister? 0:04:45.960 --> 0:04:48.240 And it's a good question, why is the Prime Minister 0:04:48.320 --> 0:04:52.479 so silent. The Albanezer government has already twice delayed a 0:04:52.600 --> 0:04:56.560 major review of travel rules and entitlements, including as recently 0:04:56.600 --> 0:04:59.600 as March this year, when it postponed the probe until 0:04:59.680 --> 0:05:01.080 late t twenty twenty seven. 0:05:02.360 --> 0:05:05.359 Why the secrecy? What has labor got to hide? 0:05:05.920 --> 0:05:08.440 And perhaps this is why the PM ran away at 0:05:08.480 --> 0:05:11.719 every opportunity when the very topic was raised this week. 0:05:12.680 --> 0:05:15.799 I haven't changed I haven't changed the rule. I haven't 0:05:15.880 --> 0:05:18.880 changed the rule. I'm not the finance minister. I haven't 0:05:18.920 --> 0:05:22.719 changed the rule. One of the issues of Minister Wells, 0:05:22.760 --> 0:05:25.680 for example, has three young children. She go birth to 0:05:25.760 --> 0:05:27.080 twins while in office. 0:05:27.320 --> 0:05:27.960 The rules have. 0:05:28.000 --> 0:05:30.919 Been there since they were put in place by the 0:05:30.920 --> 0:05:35.360 former government. When my son was above as some of 0:05:35.400 --> 0:05:38.800 you would know him, for all of that time. A 0:05:38.960 --> 0:05:42.400 turned twenty five on Monday. I should bring him down 0:05:43.040 --> 0:05:46.320 to Parliament when Parliament sat that made it possible for 0:05:46.360 --> 0:05:47.280 me to do my job. 0:05:48.200 --> 0:05:50.520 Well, this is a Prime Minister who loves to shift 0:05:50.520 --> 0:05:53.159 the blame, pretend like nothing has happened so he can 0:05:53.520 --> 0:05:55.000 keep his head buried in the sand. 0:05:55.560 --> 0:05:56.880 And we've seen it all before. 0:05:58.279 --> 0:06:04.120 I've been traveling in the car, so I haven't been 0:06:04.720 --> 0:06:08.360 advised about that contact with Ram. 0:06:08.160 --> 0:06:10.280 And that should up following those strikes further night. 0:06:10.839 --> 0:06:20.560 No, well, I've been here in Melbourne, so no, I 0:06:20.600 --> 0:06:20.919 had not. 0:06:21.960 --> 0:06:23.960 I stepped back one step. 0:06:24.040 --> 0:06:25.080 I didn't fall off. 0:06:24.960 --> 0:06:27.000 The stage, just one leg went down. 0:06:27.120 --> 0:06:28.680 But I was sweet. 0:06:29.440 --> 0:06:29.640 Yeah. 0:06:29.720 --> 0:06:31.800 He loves his excuses, doesn't he. 0:06:32.200 --> 0:06:34.000 And this week should have been a big moment for 0:06:34.080 --> 0:06:37.320 Labor as it unveiled its social media ban for under sixteen's, 0:06:37.400 --> 0:06:40.800 but the expense of Saga has completely overshadowed it, and 0:06:40.839 --> 0:06:43.600 speaking of the band has already hit its first hurdle. 0:06:43.960 --> 0:06:48.040 US online platform Reddit has today filed a challenge against it, 0:06:48.320 --> 0:06:51.440 claiming the ban infringes on free political speech and poses 0:06:51.560 --> 0:06:53.040 serious privacy risks. 0:06:53.760 --> 0:06:55.560 I wonder what Donald Trump thinks of it. 0:06:59.240 --> 0:07:01.560 Now to the worst kept secret in Melbourne and a 0:07:01.560 --> 0:07:05.560 shocking example of how that state suppressed open justice to 0:07:05.640 --> 0:07:08.520 keep the full details of a rape case involving the 0:07:08.600 --> 0:07:11.120 rich and famous hidden from you. 0:07:11.120 --> 0:07:12.560 You might have heard of the case. 0:07:12.360 --> 0:07:14.360 Of a twenty three year old man from a high 0:07:14.360 --> 0:07:17.920 profile Victorian family who was convicted of rape a week 0:07:17.960 --> 0:07:21.760 ago today and whose name was suppressed by the court. 0:07:22.440 --> 0:07:25.720 Well yesterday that gag order was lifted and Tom Sylvanney, 0:07:25.800 --> 0:07:29.400 the son of AFL Carlton Great Stephen Sylvanny, was named 0:07:29.520 --> 0:07:32.960 as the rapist, and if you follow AFL, the Sylvanni 0:07:33.080 --> 0:07:37.040 surname is a dynasty. His brother Jack Sylvanney, currently plays 0:07:37.040 --> 0:07:40.200 for Saint Kilda. His mother, Joe Sylvanney, is a TV 0:07:40.320 --> 0:07:43.920 personality and former host on Sale of the Century. But 0:07:44.000 --> 0:07:48.120 Tom's case has been shrouded in secrecy after multiple suppression 0:07:48.200 --> 0:07:51.480 orders were granted on the grounds of mental health and 0:07:51.560 --> 0:07:55.680 to avoid reputational harm to his famous family. But it 0:07:55.720 --> 0:07:58.680 was never really a secret. A quick Google search, a 0:07:58.720 --> 0:08:02.560 look on social media, name was everywhere. Tom Sylvanni rapist, 0:08:02.640 --> 0:08:05.560 Tom Sylvanney rape case. These were some of the searches 0:08:05.560 --> 0:08:10.080 on Google, even on TikTok. Despite the court's gag, Yet 0:08:10.120 --> 0:08:13.160 the lens gone to suppress this case and his identity 0:08:13.520 --> 0:08:16.720 a quite frankly extraordinary and I'll get to that in 0:08:16.760 --> 0:08:19.320 a moment. But here is how the case unfolded. 0:08:20.360 --> 0:08:24.520 Twelve jurors unanimously agreed a son of this high profile 0:08:24.640 --> 0:08:28.480 Melbourne couple raped a woman twice. We can't tell you 0:08:28.520 --> 0:08:33.160 the man's name or identify his famous family for legal reasons. 0:08:33.559 --> 0:08:35.080 Do you look at your son differently? Today. 0:08:36.440 --> 0:08:41.000 Their son is in custody tonight after the sensational conclusion 0:08:41.120 --> 0:08:44.440 to a ten day trial. He denied the crimes. At 0:08:44.480 --> 0:08:48.199 his Melbourne home. In January last year, a woman claimed 0:08:48.240 --> 0:08:51.360 he raped her in a dark room, pretending to be 0:08:51.440 --> 0:08:56.319 another man who she had a sexual relationship with. Afterwards, 0:08:56.400 --> 0:08:59.880 he docted an uber receipt to back his version of 0:09:00.120 --> 0:09:01.280 the events that night. 0:09:02.480 --> 0:09:05.480 Tom Sylvanney had been working as an AFL player manager, 0:09:05.600 --> 0:09:07.880 and a ban on his identity was in place for 0:09:07.960 --> 0:09:11.840 five hundred and forty five days. His family through what 0:09:11.840 --> 0:09:14.680 would have been hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal fees, 0:09:15.040 --> 0:09:17.640 backed up by the who's who of King's Counsel, to 0:09:17.679 --> 0:09:20.800 convince the court that their son, who sexually assaulted a woman, 0:09:21.080 --> 0:09:25.360 needed protection. But the protections he was granted even after 0:09:25.480 --> 0:09:28.320 he was found guilty of rape, are a blight on 0:09:28.360 --> 0:09:31.360 the legal system, and the timeline of events has been 0:09:31.440 --> 0:09:34.600 laid bare. In The Herald's Sun, Sylvanney was charged with 0:09:34.720 --> 0:09:38.440 rape on June fourteenth last year, hours after the first 0:09:38.559 --> 0:09:41.400 intim suppression order was made and granted in the Melbourne 0:09:41.400 --> 0:09:45.680 Magistrate's Court, suppressing his identity. The Herald's Son then published 0:09:45.679 --> 0:09:49.760 an article describing him as an AFL industry identity from 0:09:49.760 --> 0:09:53.160 a well known AFL family. Neither his name nor the 0:09:53.200 --> 0:09:56.520 employer were referenced, but the paper was hauled before a 0:09:56.559 --> 0:09:59.680 magistrate over the story and was ordered to pay Sylvanney's 0:09:59.679 --> 0:10:03.079 cost of the hearing, the legal cost for Sylvanney's legal team, 0:10:03.360 --> 0:10:07.800 plus a separate barrister for his mother. Magistrate Brett's Sonnet 0:10:07.800 --> 0:10:10.439 then slapped an even stricter gag order that there be 0:10:10.600 --> 0:10:16.599 no publication whatsoever, directly or indirectly, of any information concerning 0:10:16.640 --> 0:10:20.160 the proceeding. On February four, details of the rape were 0:10:20.200 --> 0:10:22.599 aired for the first time and Sylvanney was ordered to 0:10:22.640 --> 0:10:25.600 stand trial. The suppression order was set to lift three 0:10:25.679 --> 0:10:29.920 months later, but by April, his defense barrister, David Hallows 0:10:30.000 --> 0:10:34.000 SC pushed for another suppression order to quote protect the 0:10:34.080 --> 0:10:38.920 safety of his client during the trial. Judge Peter Rosen 0:10:39.040 --> 0:10:42.280 sided with the media and the prosecution and opposed it, 0:10:42.360 --> 0:10:45.640 but it didn't end there. The defense barrister immediately applied 0:10:45.640 --> 0:10:48.600 for a judicial review, calling for a Supreme Court judge 0:10:48.640 --> 0:10:52.040 to examine the ruling, and so on August fifteen, Supreme 0:10:52.040 --> 0:10:55.760 Court Justice Michelle Quigley ruled that Judge Rosen was in error, 0:10:56.600 --> 0:11:00.800 and another suppression order was made no November twenty one, 0:11:00.840 --> 0:11:03.640 A final suppression order was made days before the trial 0:11:03.760 --> 0:11:08.040 was set to start, and it didn't end there. On 0:11:08.160 --> 0:11:11.520 day one of the trial, Judge Gregory Lyon warned, I 0:11:11.600 --> 0:11:14.959 want to make this absolutely clear. Read my lips and 0:11:15.040 --> 0:11:17.840 listen to this message. There is to be no reporting 0:11:17.880 --> 0:11:18.880 of this case. 0:11:19.200 --> 0:11:21.200 Full stop. Now. 0:11:21.280 --> 0:11:24.160 Media sought clarification and ultimately made a decision to go 0:11:24.240 --> 0:11:29.880 ahead anyway and air the trial, albeit name suppressed. Silvani 0:11:29.960 --> 0:11:33.520 was then found guilty and his name was still gagged. 0:11:34.880 --> 0:11:37.120 And what did it achieve? Nothing? 0:11:37.760 --> 0:11:40.760 His name was out there in public, circulating all over 0:11:40.800 --> 0:11:44.720 social media, and all it did was create gossip, innuendo 0:11:45.040 --> 0:11:47.120 and drew even more public speculation. 0:11:47.440 --> 0:11:50.040 Who is the high profile family or you didn't have 0:11:50.120 --> 0:11:51.959 to look hard to find it? Now. 0:11:52.000 --> 0:11:53.920 I worked as a reporter for more than ten years, 0:11:53.920 --> 0:11:57.080 and I too have been involved in matters where the media, 0:11:57.559 --> 0:12:00.920 where media outlets I've worked for have taken suppression orders. 0:12:01.080 --> 0:12:04.199 And I'm talking big cases. One example was the Claremont's 0:12:04.200 --> 0:12:07.280 serial killer in Western Australia. But I've never ever heard 0:12:07.320 --> 0:12:09.800 of a case like the Sylvannis before to be so 0:12:10.040 --> 0:12:13.800 gagged from start to end even after a verdict. 0:12:14.559 --> 0:12:15.720 As lawyer Justin. 0:12:15.559 --> 0:12:18.600 Quill, who I'll speak to shortly rites in the Australian today, 0:12:19.080 --> 0:12:22.560 you might think this is an unusual or unprecedented case. 0:12:23.080 --> 0:12:24.800 Unfortunately not. In Victoria. 0:12:25.080 --> 0:12:27.720 Suppression orders are so common in that state that this 0:12:27.840 --> 0:12:31.320 year there are more suppression orders made there than in 0:12:31.600 --> 0:12:37.959 all the other states combined. Tom Sylvanney is a convicted rapist. 0:12:38.520 --> 0:12:41.360 He never deserved the private treatment, but he got an 0:12:41.400 --> 0:12:45.440 invisibility cloak because of his family and under the guise 0:12:45.440 --> 0:12:46.320 of mental health. 0:12:46.960 --> 0:12:48.760 On that Justin Quill rights. 0:12:48.480 --> 0:12:51.480 Mental harm is the new battleground in the fight against 0:12:51.480 --> 0:12:54.240 suppression orders and a big reason for the large number 0:12:54.240 --> 0:12:58.479 of suppression orders made in Victoria. Defendants visit a psychiatrist 0:12:58.559 --> 0:13:01.000 and tell them some facts about their mental well being. 0:13:01.360 --> 0:13:04.800 The psychiatrist isn't required to test their patient's facts. They 0:13:04.840 --> 0:13:08.520 accept them. Then the facts appear in the psychiatrist report 0:13:08.800 --> 0:13:14.440 submitted to the court and effectively become unchallenged evidence. Now, 0:13:14.480 --> 0:13:17.480 the Open Court's Act says anyone charged with an offense 0:13:17.520 --> 0:13:21.680 should be identified, Yet his case went to three different 0:13:21.720 --> 0:13:24.439 court jurisdictions in the name of suppression. 0:13:25.200 --> 0:13:26.800 Judge Andrew Palmer called. 0:13:26.559 --> 0:13:29.400 For a review yesterday due to the significant public interest 0:13:29.400 --> 0:13:32.760 in the case. He told the defense everybody knows on 0:13:32.880 --> 0:13:35.960 social media that the person convicted of rape in this 0:13:36.080 --> 0:13:39.640 court from a high profile family is mister Sylvanney. He 0:13:39.720 --> 0:13:43.040 added that even people outside of legal circles had personally 0:13:43.080 --> 0:13:47.480 told him Sylvanney had been convicted of rape, and so 0:13:47.720 --> 0:13:50.680 he was finally able to be named. All that to 0:13:50.760 --> 0:13:54.280 protect a convicted rapist, a man who now awaits sentencing. 0:13:55.080 --> 0:13:57.560 All should be equal before the law, regardless of wealth, 0:13:58.000 --> 0:14:00.520 regardless of who you are or who you're found is 0:14:01.040 --> 0:14:01.520 because what. 0:14:01.559 --> 0:14:02.800 Precedent does this set? 0:14:03.120 --> 0:14:05.560 Well, if you've got deep pockets and your claim mental health, 0:14:05.840 --> 0:14:08.200 then you just keep winning a gag order after gag 0:14:08.320 --> 0:14:09.959 order because judges. 0:14:09.600 --> 0:14:11.280 Can't or just won't challenge it. 0:14:12.160 --> 0:14:15.280 But that's just another day in Victoria, the gag order 0:14:15.320 --> 0:14:22.160 capital of Australia. All right, let's get into the day's news. 0:14:22.200 --> 0:14:22.360 Now. 0:14:22.440 --> 0:14:25.240 Joining me is a shadow Attorney General, Andrew Wallace. Andrew, 0:14:25.240 --> 0:14:26.960 good to see you as always, Thank you so much 0:14:27.000 --> 0:14:30.480 for joining me. Let's start with the expenses scandal. Susan 0:14:30.560 --> 0:14:35.200 Lee today is offering a bipartisan expenses reform. Effectively, she's 0:14:35.240 --> 0:14:38.400 almost forcing the Prime Minister's hand on this. Are you 0:14:38.480 --> 0:14:41.800 concerned about how many MPs or senators on both sides 0:14:41.800 --> 0:14:44.240 of politics could now get caught up if indeed there 0:14:44.320 --> 0:14:51.600 is some sort of a reform. 0:14:48.960 --> 0:14:51.680 Well, I think Susan's right to write to the Prime 0:14:51.680 --> 0:14:56.040 Minister and ask him for a meeting to discuss how 0:14:56.960 --> 0:14:59.720 these expenses can be reformed, because it's not just a 0:14:59.720 --> 0:15:03.120 matter of whether something complies with the letter of the law. 0:15:03.600 --> 0:15:06.640 Australians are doing it incredibly tough at the moment, Damika. 0:15:06.760 --> 0:15:10.280 We're in a cost of living crisis. It's Christmas time. 0:15:10.440 --> 0:15:13.320 There are many people who can't afford to pay their 0:15:13.320 --> 0:15:16.280 bills and pay presents, pay for presents for their kids. 0:15:16.720 --> 0:15:20.920 And to hear some of the absolutely outrageous costs that 0:15:20.960 --> 0:15:25.160 are being clocked up to the Australian taxpayer, it really 0:15:25.800 --> 0:15:28.600 angers me. I've got to tell you, because it just 0:15:28.640 --> 0:15:31.000 becomes sort of like a pox on both your houses. 0:15:31.760 --> 0:15:35.200 Australians don't care whether you're labor or liberal or whoever 0:15:35.240 --> 0:15:38.360 you are, if you're a politician. As far as Australians 0:15:38.400 --> 0:15:41.160 are concerned, they think that you've got your you know, 0:15:41.560 --> 0:15:44.600 in the trough and that is just not correct for 0:15:44.840 --> 0:15:47.880 the vast bulk of us. But it gives us all 0:15:47.880 --> 0:15:48.440 a bad name. 0:15:48.960 --> 0:15:50.680 Well, look, it absolutely does. 0:15:50.760 --> 0:15:55.040 And it's certainly not what any taxpayer would expect from 0:15:55.080 --> 0:15:58.000 the political class right now. So it'll be very interesting 0:15:58.040 --> 0:16:00.160 to see where this goes. Whether or not the time 0:16:00.200 --> 0:16:04.360 Minister does agree to do some sort of reform, we'll see. 0:16:04.520 --> 0:16:06.960 But of course this has now overshadowed the social media 0:16:07.000 --> 0:16:10.120 ban this week for under sixteen's. We just found out 0:16:10.160 --> 0:16:12.880 today that Reddit, which is a US platform, has filed 0:16:12.880 --> 0:16:16.000 a challenge against the band, claiming it infringes on free 0:16:16.000 --> 0:16:20.400 political speech and poses serious privacy risks. Andrew this was 0:16:20.400 --> 0:16:22.960 of course a bipartisan policy. Do you expect that more 0:16:23.000 --> 0:16:26.600 social media platforms will take action like this against it? 0:16:29.520 --> 0:16:32.120 Look, Tom will tell Daneka, I don't know, is the 0:16:32.120 --> 0:16:35.240 short answer. I don't think anybody does. But the reality 0:16:35.400 --> 0:16:40.720 is that these platforms make billions of dollars from Australians 0:16:40.760 --> 0:16:43.440 and even a whole lot more across the world, and 0:16:43.480 --> 0:16:46.280 the eyes of the world are on these new reforms. 0:16:46.960 --> 0:16:49.720 We saw at the UN that there are many countries 0:16:50.000 --> 0:16:54.160 that are now looking at these reforms. It was a 0:16:54.200 --> 0:16:56.880 coalition policy that we took to the last election. Let's 0:16:56.920 --> 0:16:59.480 be serious about this, where the drag the government kicking 0:16:59.520 --> 0:17:03.080 and scream on this to keep kids safe. So these 0:17:03.120 --> 0:17:06.960 platforms will view these laws in Australia as a litmus 0:17:06.960 --> 0:17:09.359 test and they will do They will stop at nothing 0:17:09.680 --> 0:17:13.280 to try and ensure that, as far as they're concerned, 0:17:13.440 --> 0:17:16.119 it doesn't spread to other countries because they will lose 0:17:16.520 --> 0:17:20.680 hundreds of billions of dollars if other countries start taking 0:17:20.720 --> 0:17:22.359 this up, and I hope they do. I want to 0:17:22.400 --> 0:17:25.879 see kids, not just in Australia protected from these platforms, 0:17:25.920 --> 0:17:28.240 I want to see kids across the world protected from. 0:17:28.040 --> 0:17:29.240 Them as well. 0:17:29.240 --> 0:17:31.240 It's been a fascinating week. Look, I want to get 0:17:31.240 --> 0:17:33.680 to some other topics. It's been a busy news day 0:17:34.160 --> 0:17:37.879 in the last few hours. Britney Higgins is now officially 0:17:38.240 --> 0:17:42.520 bankrupt after the Federal Court on today formally actually approve that, 0:17:42.560 --> 0:17:46.280 of course, following her defamation case lost to former Senator 0:17:46.400 --> 0:17:49.960 Linda Reynolds, and just on that, Linda Reynolds has also 0:17:50.000 --> 0:17:53.280 indicated that she would ask the Corruption watchdog to reopen 0:17:53.320 --> 0:17:56.840 its investigation into that two point four million dollar settlement 0:17:56.880 --> 0:17:59.639 that was of course handed to Britney Higgins from Labor. 0:18:00.040 --> 0:18:02.000 Would you support an inquiry? 0:18:04.560 --> 0:18:10.760 I would absolutely support the Knack reopening this investigation. The 0:18:10.960 --> 0:18:15.200 National Committee, the Corruption Anti Corruption Commission, it is set 0:18:15.280 --> 0:18:19.760 up to establish and investigate whether there was any systemic 0:18:20.040 --> 0:18:23.719 or corrupt conduct on the part of government officials. What 0:18:23.800 --> 0:18:27.959 we have here is a stench over this whole affair. 0:18:28.480 --> 0:18:32.639 We've seen a payment made to Brittany Higgins by the 0:18:32.640 --> 0:18:36.520 Government of some two point four million dollars. Let's just 0:18:36.560 --> 0:18:39.840 put this in perspective for the average Australian punter DNIKA, 0:18:40.200 --> 0:18:44.840 that's twenty seven years of blood, sweat and tears in income. 0:18:45.160 --> 0:18:49.199 Twenty seven years it will take the average Australian to 0:18:49.280 --> 0:18:53.280 earn that sort of money before tax. That is a 0:18:53.440 --> 0:18:56.159 long time. It's a lot of money. And what we 0:18:56.240 --> 0:18:58.960 saw was the Government hand that two point four million 0:18:59.000 --> 0:19:03.600 dollars over to Brittany Higgins in very dubious circumstances where 0:19:04.359 --> 0:19:07.639 Linda Reynolds was refused the right to be able to 0:19:07.640 --> 0:19:10.760 go to a mediation and defend her good name at 0:19:10.760 --> 0:19:15.080 the mediation. She was refused that opportunity. After a half 0:19:15.160 --> 0:19:20.000 day mediation without any proceedings even having been filed in 0:19:20.040 --> 0:19:25.760 the court. That's just it is just mind blowing. And 0:19:25.800 --> 0:19:29.439 that was after an extension of time was provided in 0:19:29.480 --> 0:19:33.800 which Brittany could have actually commenced proceedings. That decision was 0:19:33.840 --> 0:19:37.240 made by the Commonwealth without any reference to Linda whatsoever. 0:19:37.720 --> 0:19:41.720 This stinks to high Heaven. I was really disappointed to 0:19:41.720 --> 0:19:44.760 read the decision of the Knack when they initially dismissed it, 0:19:44.800 --> 0:19:47.520 and I was very pleased to hear that the Commissioner 0:19:47.600 --> 0:19:52.399 the other day said that Linda Reynolds should She's welcome 0:19:52.480 --> 0:19:56.840 to reapply again for a further investigation based on the 0:19:56.880 --> 0:19:58.680 outcomes of the two court cases. 0:19:58.920 --> 0:20:01.480 Well, I mean, you're right, Reynolds has nothing to lose now, 0:20:01.480 --> 0:20:03.520 you've got two judges that have already said no, there 0:20:03.520 --> 0:20:05.440 wasn't a political cover up. We still don't know why 0:20:05.440 --> 0:20:08.280 Britney Higgins was given that two point four million dollars 0:20:08.280 --> 0:20:10.960 of our money. All these years later, we're still none 0:20:11.000 --> 0:20:13.520 the wiser as to actually what went on during that 0:20:13.640 --> 0:20:15.240 time with Labor Andrew Wallace. 0:20:15.240 --> 0:20:15.960 We've got to leave it there. 0:20:15.960 --> 0:20:17.879 Good to catch up as always, Thanks very much for 0:20:17.960 --> 0:20:18.960 joining me on the show. 0:20:19.720 --> 0:20:22.360 Well let's return now. To the story I brought you earlier. 0:20:22.440 --> 0:20:25.919 Tom Sylvanney, the son of AFL Carlton Great Stephen Sylvanney, 0:20:26.080 --> 0:20:29.399 has been named as the high profile rapist whose identity 0:20:29.720 --> 0:20:33.720 up until yesterday was suppressed. Joining me now is Justin Quill, 0:20:33.880 --> 0:20:36.879 partner at top tier law firm Thompson Gear. 0:20:37.359 --> 0:20:39.679 Justin good to catch up. Thanks very much for joining me. 0:20:40.160 --> 0:20:44.480 Firstly, take us through the lens gone through to suppress 0:20:44.640 --> 0:20:47.480 Tom Sylvanney's identity from start to end. 0:20:48.680 --> 0:20:50.480 Yeah, well, I know you went through a few of them, 0:20:51.040 --> 0:20:54.119 through a few of the steps in your intro. Basically 0:20:54.520 --> 0:20:56.600 I can take the rest of the show if I 0:20:56.640 --> 0:20:59.800 went through all of the steps. But it started back 0:21:00.240 --> 0:21:05.480 June of last year. We've been through at least twelve 0:21:05.920 --> 0:21:08.119 different hearings, and I'm not talking anything to do with 0:21:08.160 --> 0:21:11.120 the criminal case, just his demand for secrecy. We've been 0:21:11.119 --> 0:21:15.399 in the magistrates Court, the County Court, the Supreme Court, 0:21:15.600 --> 0:21:20.040 and we've even had a Court of Appeal proceeding. We 0:21:20.080 --> 0:21:22.960 didn't end up having to have a hearing in that proceeding, 0:21:23.000 --> 0:21:25.679 but we were in the Court of Appeal, Victoria's highest 0:21:25.680 --> 0:21:29.000 court for a time. So this has been going on 0:21:29.240 --> 0:21:34.240 about eight months twelve hearings, four courts, lots of QCs, 0:21:35.040 --> 0:21:36.480 and lots of money I suspect. 0:21:36.720 --> 0:21:38.760 Yeah, well, I can imagine his family would have thrown 0:21:39.160 --> 0:21:41.160 hundreds of thousands of dollars of. 0:21:41.080 --> 0:21:43.040 Money to keep the name suppressed. 0:21:43.240 --> 0:21:47.080 What I don't understand justin is you know we've had 0:21:47.160 --> 0:21:51.639 other high profile cases George pell for example, Bruce Lehman, 0:21:51.800 --> 0:21:56.400 his name was named even before it even went to court. Yet, 0:21:56.560 --> 0:22:01.399 how is it that Tom Silvarney's name was even after 0:22:01.720 --> 0:22:04.040 he was found guilty of rape? 0:22:04.560 --> 0:22:05.439 How does that happen? 0:22:06.240 --> 0:22:08.879 Yeah, Look, the fact that it was suppressed after he 0:22:09.720 --> 0:22:11.800 was found guilty, he was a bit of an admiration. 0:22:12.560 --> 0:22:14.960 It was a timing issue. The order was said to 0:22:14.960 --> 0:22:16.960 go for three months after the trial. That was probably 0:22:16.960 --> 0:22:20.320 a mistake by the court. Ultimately it should have been 0:22:20.359 --> 0:22:22.080 lifted or it shouldn't have been in place in the 0:22:22.080 --> 0:22:24.280 first place, But it very well should have been lifted 0:22:24.520 --> 0:22:26.480 as soon as he was found guilty. It took six 0:22:26.560 --> 0:22:29.320 days for that to happen. I'm glad it did happen 0:22:29.359 --> 0:22:32.680 in the end, But you know you mentioned Bruce Lehman. 0:22:33.119 --> 0:22:36.560 That case happened in a different state. The Cardinal Powell 0:22:36.560 --> 0:22:40.720